South Sudan’s president warns coup plotters
January 25, 2023 (JUBA) – South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir on Tuesday warned coup plotters in the young nation, saying they would not be spared.
He made the remarks during the swearing-in ceremony for the Secretary General of the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) party, Peter Lam Both.
Kiir, also the SPLM chairperson, cited political rivalry as the major factors affecting development efforts and consolidation of peace, security and unity.
“In the first coup attempt in 2013, I did not arrest Riek Machar and his in-law Taban Deng Gai. They lit fire and fled and left their children. When I got them, I called Gen. James Hoth [ex-army chief] and told him to take the children to his home and look after them until the airport reopens,” he said.
Machar, leader of the main opposition party (SPLM-IO) is the First Vice President while Gai is the Vice President and chair of the services cluster.
“After the airport resumed operations, Gen. Hoth sent them to join their parents. I believe that if they were the ones who had got my son, they would have not left him”, remarked Kiir.
The South Sudanese leader, who was recently endorsed as the new SPLM chairperson, urged party members to reconcile, be steadfast and united.
“Reconciliation is the most important thing and those who rebelled against me are now the members of my party,” stressed Kiir
He added, “Our problem is that everyone wants to be number one [top seat] and there are people that have made it a point that they must be number one and the issue of number one is what caused this war in 2013”.
The former rebel commander-turned politician warned that he will go after and not spare anyone who attempt to change his government using arms.
Analysts have, however, argued that such statement could undermine the implementation of the peace deal brokered by the regional bloc (IGAD).
On August 4, 2022, parties to the September 2018 peace deal agreed to extend it for another 24 months starting in February 2023, when the original deal is expected to expire. South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir, who signed the extension alongside four other political groups, said that the extension would allow for unification of the armed forces, creation of a new constitution and time to prepare for elections.
Under the roadmap extending the peace deal, the country’s leaders have made commitments to create a Commission on Truth, Reconciliation and Healing (CTRH) by September and a Compensation and Reparations Authority (CRA) by November. Consultations on the CTRH legislation have been finalized and a report presented to the justice minister. Similar consultations are pending on the CRA.
(ST)