Sudan’s DUP MPs threaten to resign over upcoming government representation

April 10, 2017 (KHARTOUM) – A new crisis is looming between the ruling National Congress Party (NUP) and the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) led by Mohamed Osman al-Mirghani regarding the representation of the latter in the upcoming government of national concord.

Al-Mirghani, who left Sudan in 2013 to London for medical treatment, arrived in Cairo last August following controversial reports over his health conditions and that his doctors advised him to give up public work.

Differences have recently surfaced between al-Mirghani and his son Mohamed al-Hassan who serves as head of the DUP organisational sector after the former threw his weight behind a rival group of his son and authorised them to name the party representatives for the upcoming government.

An informed source told Sudan Tribune Monday that the party MPs in the national upper and lower houses beside the legislative council in Khartoum state have boycotted the sessions on Monday and held an emergency meeting with al-Hassan.

According to the source, the meeting discussed intentions of the ruling party to adopt the list of names provided by the rival group, pointing the meeting stressed the move would constitute a blatant interference in the party affairs.

The MPs threatened to withdraw from the national dialogue process had the ruling party accepted to deal with the other group.

The same source pointed that the MPs handed over their resignations from the legislative posts to al-Hassan to take the necessary decision.

According to the source, the MPs underscored that al-Hassan represents the only legitimate channel to deal with the ruling party, pointing he is the one who signed the National Document on behalf of the DUP.

It is noteworthy that the DUP was among the political parties that participated in the government-led national dialogue conference and approved the National Document.

The DUP left opposition ranks and joined the “broad-based” government of the NCP in December 2011, citing the “need to save the country,” in the words of al-Mirghani himself.

The decision of one of Sudan’s biggest opposition parties to join the government has triggered a party crisis, which has seen many DUP members tendering their resignations and others protesting in their home areas.

The party received three ministries in the federal cabinet and continues to serve under this allocation.

(ST)