Kiir rejects replacement of Peter Mayen

JUBA – South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir Mayardit has refused to replace the country’s minister of humanitarian affairs and disaster management, weeks after the Other Political Parties (OPP) wrote to the president to appoint another nominee to the position following his ouster as the head of the opposition group, an opposition source with direct knowledge has just said.

In August, Peter Mayen was accused of stabbing and locking up his wife, Aluel Garang, following a domestic violence. The stabbing of the wife in the leg and locking her up in his home town of Kuajok sparked controversy on social media with calls for President Salva Kiir Mayardit to replace him.

Speaking to reporters in Juba on August 6, 2021, Deng Ayok Deng, interim Chairperson People Liberal Party who replaced Mayen, said the controversial minister won’t be allowed to associate with People’s Liberal Party from today and therefore will also be removed as the chair of the Umbrella group of political parties and also jeopardizing his stance to be the leader of the OPP.

“We are here as a party, it has come to our knowledge that peter Mayen Majongdit who is the minister of humanitarian affairs representing OPP has become a liability to the integrity and the image of PLP, therefore on August 2, the membership of Peter Mayen as interim chairman is withdrawn for several reasons among them is a violation of the constitution and the guiding prince of PLP,” Ayok told reporters at the time in Juba.

Speaking to Sudans Post this morning, a source belonging to the OPP said President Salva Kiir Mayardit had declined to replace Peter Mayen Majongdit in early September telling them to make consensus with Mayen who the source said has refused to be replaced and has also threatened to take some of them to jail.

“The response of President Kiir is that we should reach consensus with Mayen, but Mayen has refused to sit down with us if we were to discuss his replacement as minister and this shows that President Salva Kiir Mayardit has refused to appoint anyone to replace Peter Mayen as minister of humanitarian affairs,” the official said on condition of anonymity.

The senior opposition official further said the group of the OPP will now write to the regional bloc, the IGAD, which mediated the revitalized peace agreement “because no other party to the agreement should have a say in what other parties should do or who other parties should nominate to the positions given to them as per the agreement.