Sudan’s NCP reformists to form new political party
November 21, 2013 (KHARTOUM) – A reformist group of the National Congress Party (NCP) has indicated it will form a new political party, officially splitting from the ruling party over calls for reforms, transparency and democratic changes.
But the leader of the reformists group swiftly reacted to the offer saying the stance of the Shura body confirmed their point of view that it is no longer possible to reform the NCP.
“We assure the Sudanese people that our decision to form a party far from the National Congress Party is a decision-in-principle and we are working to achieve it” Attabani said last week.
In a short statement he published at his FaceBook page on Thursday, the reformist leader announced that they decided to name this new party “Reform and Renaissance Party”.
“Today in a meeting held at the house of Ghazi Salah Al-Deen Al-Attabani, attended by a wide range of supporters of the Reform Movement, we selected the Reform and Renaissance Party as the name of the new party”, he said.
He further said the decision was taken after voting on three options : (Reformist Movement, Justice and Reform and Reform and Renaissance).
The splinter group considers that the NCP failed to implement the programme of the Islamic movement and to establish an Islamic state after 24 year of rule in Sudan. They also denounce corruption and lack of democratic freedoms in the country.
However, sources from the group said Attabani refused to add “Islamic” to the name of the new group stressing that it should remain open to all the Sudanese without religious discrimination.
The second dissidence takes place 14 years after a breakaway led by the former leader of the party Hassan Al-Turabi in 1999. At the time Al Attabani was one of the leading member who signed a motion against him.
The reformists are expected to register their new party and launch a political campaign preparing themselves for the general elections of 2015.
They may conclude an alliance with other opposition Islamist parties like the Popular Congress Party of Hassan Al-Turabi or the far right Just Peace Forum led by Al-Tayeb Mustafa who is also the uncle of the president Omer Al-Bashir.
The opposition coalition of the National Conesus Forces did not react to the internal struggle among the NCP factions, but Turabi met Ghazi two months ago after his open criticism to the bloody repression of September protests.
In an interview with Agence France Presse on Thursday Mustafa said the ruling party cannot be reformed.
He further criticised his nephew Omer Al-Bashir saying he sticks to power and refuses change.
Bashir “wants to stay in power” to protect himself from arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court over alleged war crimes committed in Darfur, he said.
(ST)