Sudan’s JPF reiterates calls to postpone 2015 election
September 19, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – The leader of the opposition radical-right party Just Peace Forum (JPF) has urged the Sudanese government to stop the ongoing preparations for 2015 elections saying it will hamper the national dialogue process.
Al-Tayeb Mustafa launched his call in an interview with Ashorooq TV on Friday, while the chairman of the National Election Commission (NEC), Mukhtar al-Asam reaffirmed that the postponement of the 2015 vote would create a “constitutional vacuum and political chaos” in the country.
Al-Asam said they are aware of the national dialogue process and they will take its outcome into account, adding “the president, the parliament and the local councils have no right to extend their mandate”.
However, the JPF leader urged the government to postpone the elections adding the spending of money for the next year vote is unjustified because “it does not represent a political priority currently” as all the Sudanese stakeholders agree on the need for a national dialogue.
“What’s the problem if the elections were postponed in response to the desire of political forces and the Sudanese people?,” he wondered.
He stressed that insisting to hold the general elections would hamper the dialogue process, adding there is a significant inconsistency between the election and ongoing political developments in connection with the dialogue between the government, the political parties and rebel movements.
Musfata who is the uncle of president Bashir and leads and a splinter from the ruling party is a member of the national dialogue high committee (7+7).
The Popular Congress Party (PCP) which is also among the opposition parties participating in the electoral process has demanded to delay the electoral process and to create conducive environment in order to involve the other opposition and rebel groups.
In a rare speech since the participation of his party in the political process, the PCP leader Hassan al-Turabi, during a Eid al-Fitr sermon delivered in his native village on 28 July said he asked the government to delay the elections to allow political parties contact their bases.
Regarding the venue of the national dialogue and the government refusal to hold talks outside country, Mustafa said the government should not be intransigent on this matter.
“These are small things and we should not allow any problem hindering dialogue,” said Mustafa who is known for his radical positions against rebel groups and the SPLM-N particularly.
He went further to reiterate his support for Paris Declaration between the Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) and the National Umma Party (NUP) on 8 August.
“Paris Declaration is more comprehensive than Addis Ababa agreement signed between Paris groups, the national dialogue mechanism and the African Union mediation,” he said.
The JPF leader called on the government to take advantage of rebels’ approval of the national dialogue and the support of the regional and international community to meet certain requirements for the success of the dialogue, and prove they deserve economic support from the international community.
The African Union Peace and Security Council on 12 September called on the international financial institutions to provide economic support package to Sudan including debt relief and concessionary loans.
The African body further called on USA and EU to lift economic sanctions imposed on Sudan “in order to contribute positively towards the creation of enabling conditions for the success of the National Dialogue”.
(ST)