Sudan ruling party says Gosh’s removal dictated by “internal consideration”
April 27, 2011 (KHARTOUM) – A Sudanese official on Wednesday broke the silence that shrouded this week’s dismissal of the presidential security adviser, Salah Gosh, denying speculations that the latter’s removal was caused by alleged power struggle within the ruling National Congress Party (NCP).
Ghazi went on to deny that the sacking of Gosh was an indication of escalated internal squabbles within the NCP. “Salah [Gosh] is an active person in the NCP and was so in all the positions he held, he will remain an active member of the party,” Ghazi added.
Sudan President Omar Al-Bashir on Tuesday issued a decree relieving Gosh from his duties as a presidential adviser for security affairs and director-general of the Presidential Security Advisory (PSA), few days after the security adviser was embroiled in a show of public bickering with the powerful presidential assistant and NCP’s vice-president Nafi Ali Nafi.
Nafi criticized in a radio interview on Friday the dialogue conducted by the PSA with opposition parties, and said it was not sanctioned by the NCP’s leadership, prompting Gosh to retort a day later with assertions that his dialogue enjoys approval by president Al-Bashir and Vice-President Ali Osman Mohamed Taha.
Gosh said that Nafi’s statement represents only himself and that his dialogue would not stop unless by direct orders from Al-Bashir.
North Sudan’s ruling party has been engaged in dialogue with two mainstream opposition parties, the National Umma Party of former Prime Minister Al-Sadiq al-Mahdi and the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) led by Mohamed Osman al-Mirgahni. The dialogue comes at a time of tension in the domestic political arena due to worsening economic conditions manifested in rising food prices, shortage of foreign currency and rising inflation. Meanwhile, the opposition blames Al-Bashir’s government for failure to keep the unity of Sudan following the secession of the oil-producing south Sudan in a referendum in January.
A Sudanese daily reported this week that Al-Bashir convened a meeting on Sunday between Nafi and Gosh. However, the paper said its sources were not able to confirm the outcome of the meeting.
Meanwhile, Sudan Tribune sources revealed that president Al-Bashir had summoned his security adviser at a late hour on Tuesday and informed him of the decision to relieve from his position, adding that Gosh did not enter into debate with the president and rather said “I hear and obey” then dashed out of the presidential guesthouse in Khartoum.
Gosh confirmed to the pro-government Sudanese daily that he had indeed received a decree relieving him from his duties, but he declined to divulge further details or issue a reaction.
The controversy surrounding Gosh’s dismissal as a presidential adviser mirrors that of his surprise removal in August 2009 from the helm of Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS), over which presided since succeeding Nafi in 2004.
(ST)