Olony must first return to Juba ‘whether he likes it or not’ – Makuei

JUBA – South Sudan’s information minister Michael Makuei Lueth has said President Salva Kiir Mayardit will not appoint SPLM-IO nominee for Upper Nile state governor, General Johnson Olony, unless he has come to Juba.

This comes after consecutive demands by the SPLM-IO to have Olony appointed before he returns to the capital which Makuei said is ridiculous and does not make sense because all the governors who were appointed have come to Juba.

“President Salva Kiir has not yet changed his mind on Johnson Olony. Yes we don’t want him to serve as the governor of Upper Nile state, but before the president could reconsider his decision on Olony, he must be first in Juba whether he like it or not,” Makuei said.

In a statement quoted by Nyamilepedia on Friday, a senior SPLM-IO official said the Kiir’s demand to have Olony first return to the capital was not relevant and said there was even no intention by the SPLM-IO to replace Olony.

“There is nothing to be negotiated about our nomination of General Johnson Olony Thambo. The claim by the government that Olony was does not fit is mischief. I repeat Olony’s nomination is not negotiable,” Dut Majokdit, the senior SPLM-IO official told Nyamilepedia.

He was further quoted as saying that the government was “tactically trying to delay and impede the implementation of the revitalized peace agreement.”