Sudan’s hidden power struggle between Burhan, Hemedti over civil service
September 28, 2022 (KHARTOUM) – The power struggle between the two top military leaders in Sudan is no longer limited to the military sphere but reached the civil service. The reinstatement of the Sudanese Islamists in the civil service after the coup has raised concerns not only among the pro-democracy forces but also of the commander of the Rapid Support Forces.
Background:
The relationship between the Chairman of the Transitional Sovereign Council (TSC) in Sudan General Abdel-Fatah al-Burhan and Commander of Rapid Support Forces (RSF) Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemetti) has long been a subject of speculation and intrigue. This was particularly true in wake of the October 25th coup in which Burhan decided to dissolve the civilian government led by Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok and end the governing coalition between the military and the Forces of Freedom & Change (FFC) established pursuant to the 2019 constitutional declaration.
Publicly the junta leader has repeatedly insisted that there is no disagreement between the army – represented by Burhan – and the RSF led by Hemetti and asserted that the two are on inseparable terms.
Most recently Burhan – while addressing the commemoration of the 123rd anniversary of the Karari battle at Wadi Sidna military base on September 6 – went even further to accuse those pushing the narrative of the feud between the two men of living a fantasy world and hoping to drive a wedge between the army and RSF.
But the tension is real particularly given concerns in military circles that Hemetti and the RSF are growing in strength and profile to the point where they are viewed as being on par with the national army.
An example of this sentiment came to full display when an investigative journalist known as Monte Carro reported that the leader of last year’s failed coup attempt Major General Abdel Baki Bakrawi told his peers that Hemetti went far beyond his mandate and procured advanced weaponry for the RSF.
Complicating the relationship is the increased demands internally and externally that the RSF be integrated into the army, a proposal to which Hemetti expressed vehement opposition in May 2021. There is also a widely held perception among ordinary Sudanese that the RSF is responsible for the bloody crackdown on the sit-in protests in June 2019.
Looking back to the post-Bashir period the features of rivalry between Burhan and Hemetti were starting to evolve particularly in the attempts of both men to exert control over government institutions.
The first step undertaken by Hemetti following the demise of Bashir’s Islamist regime involved him intervening to convince electricity workers to end their strike and later granting them bonuses in a sign of how he planned to use soft power to buy influence.
The RSF commander made a similar move later involving high school teachers who were grading exams and paid them substantial bonuses.
Al-Burhan who sensed Hemetti’s rising star and popularity appeared bent on changing that. He tasked him with heading an economic committee that would tackle a wide array of longstanding economic challenges.
Advisers to the RSF commander warned him against accepting the assignment calling it a “trap” and an attempt by Burhan to set him up for failure.
A former adviser to Hemetti told {Sudan Tribune} that his ex-boss resisted the chairmanship at first but eventually agreed and even made fiery statements vowing to stop the dollar in its tracks.
The adviser – who asked for anonymity – said that the explosive committee had failed to deliver particularly when it came to issues of forex, fuel and electricity.
Another ex-member of Hemetti’s media team disclosed to {Sudan Tribune} that the RSF commander also initially refused to partake in Burhan’s decision to move ahead with the October 25th coup.
He went on to say that Hemetti also rejected the agreement signed on November 21st between Burhan and Hamdok before being talked by his brother – his RSF parliament – into accepting it.
According to the same official, Hemetti received internal reports warning him that Burhan sought through his post-coup moves to reassert control over civil service.
Among the steps that Burhan undertook was to disband the committee that was working on flushing out Islamists and proponents of the former regime from government bodies.
Furthermore, the TSC chairman worked through the judiciary to reinstate Islamists who were removed from their posts by the committee and unfreeze their bank accounts.
In an interview with {Sudan Tribune} political analyst, Mohamed Idris agreed with the proposition that Burhan is taking this “risky” step of bringing back elements of the former regime to the civil service in order to weaken Hemetti’s hand and enhance his leverage.
Why does this matter? According to Hemetti’s former advisor, the restoration of Islamists and ex-regime civil servants shamed his influence efforts given the animosity Islamists hold towards him.
Contingency plan – The former official media also claimed that Hemetti formed a team comprised of 5,000 – 8,000 civil servants who worked in vital sectors including banking, commerce and media.
The goal, he said is to enable Hemetti to impact government agencies and their decisions.
More Tension: Four months ago, the RSF commanders refused to heed the advice of those in Burhan’s orbit who pushed for withdrawal from the tripartite mechanism (African Union, United Nations & IGAD) in order to move toward forming a Supreme Council of the Armed Forces with overreaching powers.
Multiple sources told Sudan Tribune that Hemetti’s refusal almost led to a public confrontation with Burhan and the army that could have well turned violent. This scenario is something that external actors have long warned about.
Nonetheless, Hemetti recently managed to earn rare praise from the United Nations for his efforts in tribal reconciliations in the Darfur region.
Bad Omen: The researcher in political affairs Amjad al-Naim told Sudan Tribune that the Burhan-Hemetti struggle for control of the civil service threatens the integrity of government institutions and further erodes the concept of civilian control in favour of the military.
(ST)