Malong, Pagan, Cirilo, Ajawin and others form military alliance to ‘rescue South Sudan’ from collapse

JUBA – South Sudan holdout opposition leaders, General Paul Malong, Gen. Pagan Amum, General Thomas Cirilo, among others, have formed a military alliance officials allied to them say is aimed at “rescuing South Sudan from the imminent collapse.”

Malong is the leader of South Sudan United Front (SSUF), Pagan is the leader of Real SPLM, while Cirilo is the leader of the National Salvation Front (NAS). Others in the opposition including the National Democratic Movement (NDM-PF) led by Emmanuel Ajawin, UDRM led by Thomas Tut, and SSNMC led by Alex Yatta.

In a statement on Friday, the five opposition groups appointed Gen. Pagan Amum as the spokesman of the new alliance known as Non-Signatories South Sudanese Oppositions Group (NSSSOG) which is calling for an alternative government.

Speaking to Sudans Post on Friday night, a senior opposition official allied to Gen. Malong said NSSSOG is a military alliance aimed at leading the people of South Sudan in the fight against the government of President Salva Kiir which they accused of having no will to implement the agreement it signed in 2018.

“The Non-Signatories South Sudanese Oppositions Group (NSSSOG) is a military alliance formed by the people of South Sudan through the five groups to lead them in the fight against the dictatorship of President Salva Kiir Mayardit,” the official told Sudans Post on condition of anonymity.

But when contacted by Sudans Post, Emmanuel Ajawin, the leader of the NDM-PF refused to admit or deny if the NSSSOG is a military alliance, but said the new consortium aims to bring together all stakeholders for change.

“Well everybody can analyze in their own way,” he said of the assertion that the alliance’s objective is purely military. “We intend to bring people together including civil society, youth and women.”

TECHNOCRATIC GOVERNMENT

The five groups on July 13 issued a statement rejecting any extension of the transitional period and called for the regional communities including the IGAD which mediated the revitalized peace agreement in 2018 to support them in their call for a technocratic government.

“It is incumbent upon all the stakeholders in the country, from the political organizations, civil society, faith-based organizations, women, and youth groups to collectively reject the extension of the period of R-TGONU and decide the future of the country to avoid its collapse into chaos and disintegration,” they said in the statement a copy of which was obtained by Sudans Post.

“We the Non-Signatory South Sudan Opposition Parties, who rejected the R-ARCSS, and now driven by the noble goal to rescue our state and our nation from collapse and disintegration, call on all south Sudanese political forces and all the other South Sudanese stakeholders from civil society, faith based, women and youth organizations to forge a way forward, formalizing the current discussion and to build consensus which will lead to the establishment of a New transition with a government of Technocrats/Hybrid government, as the R-TGONU Transitional Period comes to an end by February 2023,” they said.