JUBA – South Sudan’s main armed opposition leader, Riek Machar of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO), has called for a 24-month extension of the country’s transitional period, delaying its first elections.
Machar who is also the first vice president cited, in a letter to President Salva Kiir Mayardit on February 13, 2024, incomplete provisions of the revitalized peace agreement as justification for the delay.
He stressed the need to complete security arrangements, establish a permanent constitution, conduct a population census, implement judicial reforms, address the repatriation of refugees and resettlement of internally displaced persons, establish transitional justice mechanisms, disseminate the peace agreement, reconstitute independent commissions and institutions, and conduct pre-election activities, including voter registration.
Machar argued that these outstanding tasks require a timeline extending at least 24 months and necessitate dialogue among parties to agree on a path forward, emphasizing that the constitution-making process has the longest timeline and will ultimately determine the end of the transitional period and the timing of elections.
“In light of this, it is imperative that the parties to the Agreement must dialogue among themselves in order to chart the way forward to allow for the implementation of these critical activities that are extremely important for a peaceful and democratic end of the transition,” he said.
The main armed opposition leader further reiterated his group’s commitment to the implementation of the agreement.
“The SPLM/SPLA (IO) reiterates its full commitment to the implementation of the R-ARCSS as the only viable option for peaceful and democratic transition,” he said.
Under the terms of the revitalized peace agreement and a 2022 extension roadmap, South Sudan was scheduled to hold its first elections in December of this year.
However, recent months have seen calls from various political groups urging leaders to engage in dialogue as crucial provisions of the revitalized agreement remain unimplemented.
Prominent opposition leader Lam Akol earlier this month and the South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA), led by Josephine Lague, have both echoed this sentiment.
Lague expressed readiness for elections but also called for dialogue among peace parties.
Totally agreed with him.
I agrre with Dr. Machar. we do nor want premature election that allowed looters of the Country to create conflict among the communities without following permanent Constitution making/draft,security arrangement, there is not country that will run election without permanent constitution and population census.
non-Christian nations will never have constitutions but wars, coups, and interim constitutions for thousands of years, they will never be corrected. Sudanese nations have chaotic leadership for the last 70 years because they don’t know God. thanks rev karlo kolong founder of Evangelical free churches of the Sudanese nations, architect of Sudanese peace of 2005, author of 57 books, merowetv, website http://www.revkarlokolong.com
this is the best opinion to rescue Sudanese nations and stop child soldiers, poverty, it is God who gave me this second wisdom in addition to the first known as “we are not an island in the Sudan” locally called (CPA)International referendum forms for Sudanese nations
August 31/2023
I am going to focus these issues on the former British nine provinces in the Sudan that is Khartoum province headquarter Khartoum, Kasala province headquarter Kasala, Algezira province headquarter Medeni, Northern province headquarter Aldamer, Kordufan province headquarter El Obeyd ,Darfur province headquarter El Fasher, Upper Nile province headquarter Malakal, Equatoria province headquarter Juba, Bar Gazelle province headquarter Wau. We can call them regions this time, each of them with the same states under it, the leader to be called president of the region, state governors the same titles.
What types of governments do we need within one Sudan?
There should be three types of governments beginning from State government, regional government to federal governments which means there will always be three main elections based on these three types of governments. We may have two main parties like Sudan African national congress (SANC) and Sudan African national union (SANU) registered in all the three places of the three types of Governments. In preparatory exercises or caucus activities each party should have two candidates vying for presidency at last one person will compete for presidency, all of these 4 must be from same region. And presidential term limit is 4 years to allow all members of the nine regions or tribes inside get a chance of rule, at the end of 36 years. Each region rules only once in a rotational system, then it can come back to the first region again. Let us say after UN 3 years rule is completed, by then we have finished the constitutional making. Let us say 1) Equatorai takes the first 4 years presidency, followed by 2)Darfur, 3)Kasala, 4)algezira, 5)Northen province, or region, 6)Kordufan 7)Upper Nile, 8)Khartoum and 9)Bar Ghazels. The 4 years term limit is to allow all the nine regions or tribes get a chance for presidency. The issue of some communities like Jalaba who ruled for 70 years, from 1956 to this year, and Dinka who ruled ten years in the time of Abel Alier and 22 years of John Gareng in the bush and 18 years of Salva Kirr now, that is 10+22+18 is = 40 years of Dinka domination, that is unfair. God is not happy. We should keep this new system in constitutional life to avoid other communities going back to the bushes and form rebellions.
We don’t want our children to miss school curriculum, women giving birth in bushes, foreign lands like animals, old men running from country to countries, we are given artificial names like Internally displaced people (IDPS) and Refugees, homeless people, fed by UNIMISS, while God placed all natural resources, like minerals, wildlife, rivers, fish, birds, vegetables all over our lands, yet the brutal leaders say “there is no food in our country.” If God knew that there is no food in our country, he would have stop making new children for our country. why all of these weaknesses happen? Whoever hate peace and want to continue killing our people, is an enemy of our nations, Sudanese will curse such dictators and God will hear their prayers. How can one man kill 13000 Sudanese in one year or killed 40 million Sudanese in 70 years and we still support him? All of us are made in the image of God and God placed us in this land to cultivate, eat and sleep peacefully.
Dear Sudanese nations! decide your own future.
We must think with the minds God gave us to rule our children on earth, we cannot allow greedy masters to dominate our lands and future since the British left the country in January 1956 about 70 years now. they made us poor. We became international refugees or IDPS without school fees, uniforms, monthly salaries, for soldiers, police, prison warders, wildlife, judges, farmers, citizens, Lecturers, teachers, doctors. Recently, I read in Sudan Tribune an article that says “more than 400 teachers in Eastern Equatoria state of Torit remained outside the schools for five years, because they have no salaries.” Can we blame the parents, children or teachers? No, the leadership within these two Sudanese nations. Sudanese leaders have killed more than 40 million Sudanese in 70 years, apart from those who died of hunger, diseases, illiteracy and natural calamities. Even after the division of the country in 2011, no change.
This is how the form can determine our future, whoever ignores this urgent case, is an enemy of our children, he or she is against the peace God presented to us in this 21st century. People from 18 years and above must decide and the family members within the household must be added, especially children who cannot write.
The name of the voter——-Put the number after household
A) “yes” for UN3 years interim period in one Sudan number of household——–
B) “no” un-Interim period in the Sudan—number of household——
C) Region——-
D)State—-
E) Community—-town——-
Human rights and UN security council members should move with these forms to any country in the world and inside Sudanese nations, regions, states for a period of three months then bring the results for action. Within these 3 years UN plus Sudanese staff will utilize this period, drill oil wells, develop all the departments roads, forests, marginalized communities, massive agricultural projects, collect guns from pastoral communities and stop cattle raiders. The UN can send 25’000 peacekeepers to each region and the national army should be 20’000 in each region, police 15’000 in each region, prison warders, wildlife the same. Just to mention a few.
The interim president must be UN followed by 9 regional members to be stationed in Kosti, the federal capital of the Sudan, each region should have UN leader plus 3 host members, the same in each state, interim ministers, regional ministers and state ministers must be guided by UN members
Sudanese cannot afford 70 years of exile and IDPs
Dear Sudanese nations inside and outside! UN, IGAD, AU, Arab League, dead gods, NATO, Europeans, Africans, Americans, Latin America, Asia, Australia will never decide your future. God has given us minds to use his wisdom like this one. This is not my first time for God to give me this wisdom and invite nations to our Sudanese problems, I did the same thing in February 2002 a vision called “we are not an island the Sudan” which brought the first Sudanese peace of 2005, call CPA that was plan (A) and God gave me this second vision in 2010 as plan (B) because I knew the Sudanese will still fight each other even after Division, I am used by God to deliver Sudanese nations from ashes and disaster.
This is what God did to his children of Israelis who suffered under Egyptian slavery for 430 years, he gave Moses’ power to take his people of Israel back to Cannan around 1200 BC. In 2002 the same God gave me power to take Sudanese back home in 2005.
But the Sudanese did not give thanks to God in 2005 and God took the CPA back to Heaven, they disbelieved me as their black Moses. They are waiting for white Moses. Shame on you. Yet Blood is thicker than water. I have come again to invite the same nations to our problems. God cannot give wisdom to non-born-again Christians, can a criminal correct a criminal? Can a thief correct a thief? Can a liar correct a liar? Can a dirty man clean a dirty man? Can a blind lead blind people? All say NO. the vision God gave me known as “we are not an island in the Sudan” is equal to the Vision God gave to Moses known as “let my people go” that of Rev Martin Luther king jr say “I have a dream” all of these visions were given by God the Almighty to his gifted servants to rescue the nations.
Therefore, these 3 years neutral period will give all Sudanese communities chance to contribute for collective constitution for all, and election every 4 years with rotational presidency within the 9 regions to avoid domination by the so call “clever big communities or oligarchs, this is what US former president Donald Trump in his recent August29/2023 article criticized. All commanders or leaders who killed our Sudanese relatives for many years, be freed, no ICC. Even those human rights groups, journalists, innocent citizens, arrested for telling the truth and crying for their rights, be freed. The army or Soldiers be given holidays to see their families, some of them missed their families for more than 15 years or died without reports, this is evil. All communities should have right for equal employments in the nine regions, Judiciary must be independent. There must be religious freedom for all, nobody should force somebody to join his or her religion.
So, any nation without these Biblical ten commandments is lawless and chaotic. This is the reason why our African citizens and children risk their lives overseas. Some leaders rule for 10 to 55 years, especially the big tribes. Dear David Otto! If you can help me spread these karlonic ideas of the UN 3 years mandate and neutral rule on Sudanese nations, it will be very great. Share with NATO, EU, AU, IGAD, US Congress, religious leaders etc. I already shared with some Sudanese intellectuals in the diaspora like the former Sudanese prime minister Dr Abdalla Hamdog and many others welcomed these ideas, I can give you their WhatsApp, Dr Abdala framed the same idea April5/2023. such ideas can be applied even in your country where the president becomes an everlasting icon in the country, some presidents ruled for 55 or 70 years as family kingdoms, no clever young or gifted leaders can take over. Such UN mandates can give weak tribes chances to contribute for a permanent constitution with rotational leadership among the tribes. This new system of rule can neutralize the idea of border dispute like Abeyi region.
NB: South Sudan as we see landlocked today is a dead nation, without the sea port, look how Ethiopia without limbs or sea port is crying. Both President Mengistu Haile Mariam and DR John Gareng were right not to break Eritrea from Ethiopia not to break South Sudan from Sudan, now both Eritreans a Ethiopians are crying, escaping to western world crossing mediterranean seas. The same to Sudanese nations.
We can forgive those dictators, who killed more than 40 million Sudanese in70 years, no ICC. thank you rev karlo kolong, Founder of Evangelical free churches of Sudanese nations, architect of Sudanese peace of 2005, author of 55 books, websitewww.revkarlokolong
my question is that, those who talks about extension everyday, do you hope that , if we extending the period again to 2 year, do you think that, there will be change? there is no change even we extend the period again, unless we change this regime totally, that is the better way to us.
I personally do not thing even if 24 months extention is made again as did in 2022,nothing is going to change .the country is now facing severe economic crisis insecurity among others
,there is lack of political Will by the splm end the suffering of the people of South Sudan.