Kiir tells visiting Senegalese president ‘our relations not a short-term calculation’

JUBA – South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir Mayardit has hailed ties between Senegal and South Sudan, saying the relationship between Juba and Dakar is not ‘a short term calculation’.

The South Sudanese head of state made the remarks during a press conference at the state house J1 with his Senegalese counterpart Mack Sall who doubles as the Chairperson of the African Union (AU) after arriving in Juba on Monday afternoon.

“The bilateral relationship established now between our two countries resurrects these ties and invites us to deepen cultural and economic exchange and political cooperation. In this way, we can advance African integration between these two countries, one firmly centered in North and East Africa and the other firmly centered in West Africa,” Kiir said.

“Our bilateral relations will stand on the shoulders of people like Cheikh Anta Diop, who knew the importance of understanding who we are, we come from, and what unifies us above and beyond politics. Our relationship is not a short-term calculation but a profound kinship relation founded upon African principles that stem from a long memory of where we came from and a vision of the future,” he added.

A closed door meeting between Kiir and Sall was attended by First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny who doubles as the leader of the main opposition party, Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO).

YAKANI WELCOMES VISIT

For his part, the Executive Director of Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), Edmund Yakani, welcomed the visit by the Senegalese president and said the African Union can play a big role in persuading the parties to fully implement the agreement.

“I would like to take this opportunity to welcome the Senegalese President to the Republic of South Sudan who is also the incumbent chair of the African Union,” Yakani told Sudans Post.

“We are aware that African Union has a big role to play in helping the South Sudanese parties in transforming the current situation where we are in to a political stable situation through the implementation of the R-ARCISS,” he added.

Yakani further urged the Senegalese president to meet the South Sudanese leaders in order for them to develop an inclusive roadmap for the implementation of the remaining tasks of the 2018 agreement which he said will pave way for credible elections.

“Let me take this opportunity by asking the president of Senegal who is also the chair of the African Union that he should meet our political leaders. Our political leaders right now are in a critical moment where they need to develop a roadmap to implement the pending tasks of the R-ARCISS,” he said.

“We have seen already conflicting messages coming from our parties around the development of the roadmap. So we hope the chairperson of AU who is the president of Senegal can play a big role to build consensus among our parties to develop a roadmap that is genuine and realistic, and can be implemented especially [on] the pending tasks around the transitional security arrangements and the question around transitional justice and at the same time a roadmap where they can commit themselves to deliver tasks that will lead the country credible and peaceful elections,” he added.