JUBA – South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir Mayardit and his First Deputy, Dr. Riek Machar Teny on Monday ordered free passage to South Sudan People’s Defense Forces deployed to Nasir County of Upper Nile.
This was decided at a high-level meeting of the presidency held in Juba on Monday.
A key political heavyweight, including First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar, Vice President for the Economic Cluster Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel, Vice President for the Service Cluster Josephine Lagu, and leaders of other political parties, attended the meeting, which was presided over by President Salva Kiir Mayardit.
Speaking to the press after a meeting on Monday, Michael Makuei Lueth, Minister of Information and Communication, said the presidency decided that the part should raise awareness of the 2018 peace pact so that people are aware of its contents.
“Under this, it was agreed that the forces that are moving to relieve the forces that have been in Nasir for long should be allowed and given free passage to reach Nasser so that they go and relieve their brothers and sisters who are there all this time to come back and they take over there,” said Makuei.
According to Makuei, the president pledged to cooperate for the benefit of all South Sudanese citizens and the agreement’s execution.
For his part, Puot Kang Chol, Minister of Petroleum and senior SPLM-IO, urged the local populations along the way to cooperate and guarantee the troops’ safe arrival at their barracks in Nasir County.
“We have agreed that the forces that are moving from Malakal to Nasser should be allowed to go peacefully until they reach their barracks in Nasir,” Kang.
“I just want to confirm that that is what was agreed and that we have also agreed that the normal functioning of the JDB, the JDB will continue with their normal functioning, do their work, and continue to exercise command and control in the process of the implementation of R-ARCSS.”
Tension is rising in the area following the government’s deployment of troops to replace those already stationed in Nasir and Ulang counties.
Local armed youth opposed the decision, arguing that the military’ deployment was intended to enforce a vigorous disarmament effort.
