SPLM-IO official slams peace deal as trick to ‘accumulate wealth’ by rival leaders

JUBA – A senior South Sudan main armed opposition official and a fierce critic of the country’s First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny has slammed the revitalized peace agreement and its slow space of implementation as a trick to accumulate and lots the wealth of South Sudan by rival leaders of the war-torn country.

Duer Tut Duer, former SPLM-IO governor of the defunct Sobat state and member of the SPLM-IO National Liberation Council said in a statement extended to Sudans Post on Thursday that he doubts the revitalized peace agreement would solve the many problems of the country, if it is actually going to be implemented given its current slow space.

“The Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan is reduced to power sharing between Salva Kiir and Riek Machar, that is to say: Position of President for Salva Kiir and the Position of First Vice President for Riek Machar, and the wealth sharing by giving the Ministry of Finance to Salva Kiir and the Ministry of Petroleum to Riek Machar,” the senior opposition official who threatened to remove Machar previously said.

“Peace should not be about distribution of privileges to the elites, should not be about division of positions to the politicians, it should not be about sharing of power by the leaders, instead, it should be about creation of both the situation and the environment whereby all citizens live in harmony, freely, tranquil, peacefully, protected and all of them are beneficiaries of the peace dividends,” he added.

The outspoken senior opposition official pointed out that “Peace Agreement always ends the War between the warring parties and permit the former enemies to work together to fight together against diseases, against illiteracy and against backwardness. All these necessitate the provision of clean potable water to the citizens, provision of health facilities to fight diseases, opening of schools to fight illiteracy and developing of the Country to fight the backwardness.”

“In our case the Parties should also work together to free the country from tribalism, from nepotism and from corruption to enable the parties build a peaceful, free, United and prosperous Nation. I am sure the current Revitalized Government is not the one to meet the needs of the people of South Sudan since they are individually or collectively for accumulation of wealth for themselves and for their families rather than distributing and redistributing the wealth to the people of South Sudan.

“Let me take this opportunity to inform the South Sudanese in general and the people of Upper Nile State in particular that: the accusations made by Riek Machar and his team in Juba on others concerning the events of Akoka are not true. Riek Machar is the one who should give us all the details of what is currently happening in Upper Nile State, because Riek Machar still have three Caretaker Governors in Upper State and a good number of Caretaker commissioners who report to him on daily basis and who receive orders from him ( Riek Machar ) on daily basis.

“If there is any one behind that: should be Riek Machar himself because Riek Machar is the one who is not allowed to travel outside Juba so any Communal fight in Upper Nile is in the interest of Riek Machar because he can use it as a pretext to ask Salva to allow him go to Upper Nile to calm down the situation, once allow to move, only God knows what will happen. Instead of accusing others unduly, Riek Machar needs to keep quiet.”