Urgent dialogue needed to resolve S. Sudan political situation: R-JMEC
March 21, 2024 (JUBA) – With the end of the extended transitional period fast approaching, urgent dialogue is required to resolve the situation in South Sudan, the peace monitoring body said.
On Thursday, the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (R-JMEC) expressed concerns that a number of critical tasks are unimplemented while critical bodies like the Political Parties Council (PPC), National Elections Commission (NEC) and National Constitutional Review Commission(NCRC) remain unfunded with no clear timelines on the way forward.
It said with elections barely nine months away, South Sudan needs clarity from the Revitalised Transitional Government of National Unity (RTGoNU) on how it is planning to expedite and complete the critical pending tasks to conduct free, fair and credible elections in December 2024.
According to RJMEC, its engagements with all key stakeholders and institutions and mechanisms of the September 2018 peace agreement evidently showed that there is a need for clear and actionable political guidance from the executive of the RTGoNU and the parties to the agreement.
“As such, urgent dialogue of the parties to the R-ARCSS is the most expedient way to address the current political situation,” partly reads the statement from R-JMEC.
It added, “It is clear that the way forward on elections depends on the Parties meeting and engaging in dialogue openly and constructively, in the spirit of collegiality and consensus.”
As part of its mandate, the peace monitoring body said it has written to the RTGoNU and stressed on the importance of the inter-party consultations and constructive dialogue, in order to forge a viable way forward, within the framework of Article 1.9.1 of the R-ARCSS, which states that:
“The RTGoNU is founded on the premise that there shall be collegial collaboration in decision-making and continuous consultations within the Presidency, between the President, the First Vice President, and the Four Vice Presidents, to ensure effective governance during the Transitional Period,” it stressed.
The peace monitoring body further stated that even though implementation has not progressed according to the roadmap timelines, it is nonetheless possible to make important strides in the coming months by undertaking various tasks as stipulated in the September 2018 peace agreement.
“This will serve as a clear demonstration of the political goodwill needed to move forward while engaging in dialogue,” concluded the statement.
(ST)