Machar’s alleged plan to split untrue – release
January 6, 2010 (JUBA) – The office of the Vice President of Southern Sudan and deputy chairman of the ruling party, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) has dismissed media reports alleging his plans to form a new political party.
A Khartoum-based media house on Tuesday published a story that the Vice President, Dr. Riek Machar Teny, had been planning for a move to form an alternative political party alleging that he was discontented with the current SPLM nomination criteria that blocks his chance to compete for presidency.
The allegations in particular cited as main reason the recently introduced rules of membership by the party which says only members who have been with the SPLM for at least the last ten years should qualify to contest for the position of the President.
The report further alleged that Machar in this regard held different meetings in Juba to finalize the preparations to announce the new political formation.
However, in a press release issued on Tuesday after consultations with him, the office of the Vice President strongly refuted the allegations describing it as an attempt by the enemies of peace to plant mistrust in the SPLM leadership.
“Today the enemies of peace [have] struck by spreading more fictitious news about the SPLM leadership again. Those that are yearning to divide the SPLM allegedly propagated erroneous reports about the resignation of the (…) leader of the SPLM. They will fail! Whatever objective they are trying to achieve by falsifying information to divide our party will further strengthen us,” says the statement.
“To the SPLM members, people of the Sudan and the world, Dr. Machar is the Deputy Chairman of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) carrying out SPLM’s duties daily. While the SPLM’s vision to democratically transform Sudan is in full gear, people should stay vigilant for those who are keen to divide the party and the people of Southern Sudan. They will always fabricate information at a time our unity is highly considerate,” it continued.
The release also expressed disappointment over the continued publishing of fabricated news items by some media houses in Khartoum. “The report published by certain papers in Khartoum confirmed how unethical some media houses in Khartoum are, by publishing incorrect information without legitimate sources. Those tabloid papers carrying out SPLM’s adversaries’ agenda spreading baseless and unfounded information about the resignation of the SPLM deputy chairman Dr. Machar should not be trusted.”
About two weeks ago a pro-NCP Arabic newspaper, Intibah, also published a similar story in Khartoum alleging that the Vice President had resigned; a publication which later on turned out not to be true and was dismissed by senior SPLM officials as the work of the enemy trying to divide the party.
Dr. Machar joined the SPLM in 1984, about one year after its formation in May 1983. He split ranks with late Dr. John Garang after experiencing political differences over the objective of the war and formed his own movement in 1991 to pursue the right to self-determination for the people of Southern Sudan and in 1997 signed the Khartoum Peace Agreement with the current government which recognized the right of self-determination.
In the year 2000 his agreement was violated by the government which prompted him to return to the bush and in 2002 the two rebel factions finally resolved their political differences by harmonizing them and merged their ranks and file again exactly eight years ago on January 6, 2002.
The newspaper alleged that Machar eyes the position of the President in the Government of Southern Sudan and therefore sees the newly introduced criteria of ten years membership, which disregards his first seven years SPLM membership from 1984-1991, as a direct conspiracy to block him from contesting for the position since he is only eight years in the SPLM after the Nairobi merger.
Dr. Machar is currently in Bentiu, the capital of Unity state, observing the party’s selection process of aspirants by the state Electoral College.
The party is racing with time to yet nominate its candidates for each and every political position across this vast country including its nominees for the position of the President of the Republic and another one for the President of the Government of Southern Sudan.
The chairman of the SPLM Elections Strategy Committee, James Wani Igga, has announced that the party’s Political Bureau will soon meet to nominate the candidates and the names of the final candidates will be announced on January 14, including for the positions of governorship in the ten states.
It is also expected that some party members who aspire for such political positions and lose nomination by the Political Bureau may opt to compete for the positions as independent candidates.
Igga did not however specify a date for the party to declare names of its long awaited candidates for the presidency positions in Khartoum and Juba.
Sudan, in accordance with the 2005 North-South peace deal that ended 21 years of war, is set to hold its post-war general elections three months from now in April 2010.
(ST)