SPLA-IO says ‘something happened’ to unified army, NSS commands structure

JUBA – South Sudan’s main armed opposition Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO) led by First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny has said that “something” has happened, probably in a wrong way, on the unified army command and that of the National Security Service.

President Salva Kiir Mayardit last week agreed with First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny on the allocation of senior security positions in the army, police, National Security Service, civil defense, and the wildlife service.

First Vice President Machar who doubles as the chairman and commander in chief of the main armed opposition SPLM/SPLA (IO) over the weekend submitted the list of his nominees to positions allocated to his group by the agreement.

President Kiir on Tuesday night issued several republic decree appointing top opposition security officers into positions in the army, National Security Service, national police service, wildlife and civil defense.

But in a statement on following the formation of the unified army and other security bodies’ commands, SPLA-IO spokesman Lam Paul Gabriel said “Something happened to the signed Unified Command Structure of the Army and NSS.”

While the senior SPLA-IO officer did not give further details on what went wrong, Press Secretary in the office of the First Vice President and SPLM-IO Director of Information and Public Relations Puok Both Baluang told Sudans Post that the group will issue a statement on Wednesday morning.