South Sudanese minister says elections must be held in 2023

March 18, 2022 (JUBA) – South Sudan’s information minister said that elections must be held next year even if the peace partners fail to agree on the sticky issues in the revitalized peace agreement of 2018.

In response to a question by Eye Radio about whether elections would be postponed if key provisions in the 2018 revitalized agreement were not met, Minister Michael Makuei stated that South Sudanese are fed-up with the failure of the transitional government leaders to implement peace pact.

“The people of South Sudan are even fed up with these adjournments, every time they adjourn, and every time they adjourn, they are fed up with us,” he told Eye Radio.

“We need to go to them so that they bring us back if they so wish, otherwise elections will be held in time and people have to prepare for elections,” he stressed.

The minister further said elections will have to be done even if the prerequisites are not met so that elections give people the opportunity to make a choice of who they should decide to manage their affairs.

In accordance with the September 2018 agreement, elections in South Sudan should be held in 2023. But key provisions still remain unimplemented.

Some of the sticking issues include the inability to agree on the security arrangements and the composition of the unified command, repatriation of the refugees and displaced persons, the conduct of population census, and the development of the country’s permanent constitution.

The Political Parties Act of 2012 also requires a review and approval by the parliament to enable free and democratic registration of political parties in South Sudan.

(ST)