By William Madouk
Senior members of the Sudan People Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) trade accusation of suspension for alleged conniving to overthrow Dr. Riek Machar.
It started yesterday when Oyet Nathaniel Pierino, Acting Chairperson of the SPLM/SPLA-IO strapped of four senior party of their membership for allegedly devious Scheme to overthrow Machar.
Oyet Nathaniel Pierino, Acting Chairperson of the SPLM/SPLA-IO
Mr. Stephen Phar Kuol, minister of peacebuilding; Agok Majur Kur, a national member of parliament; Dining Lam, a national member of parliament; and Luke Thoan Teny, member of the East African Legislative Assembly.
“I Cde. Oyet Nathaniel Pierino, Acting Chairperson of the SPLM/SPLA-IO, do hereby issue this order to suspend the following members from their respective duties and membership of the Party in accordance with Sections 16.3 and 16.4 of the Party’s Code of Conduct for engaging in subversive activities deemed as ‘serious offenses’ under Section 14.5 of the Code of Conduct,” party read the order.
SPLM-IO said that the suspension of four officials was due to their involvement in operations that helped president Salva Kiir’s party, the SPLM, foster discord and unseat first vice president Machar.
“[they are] engaged in activities in support of the SPLM-IG to create disunity in the party and abrogate the R-ARCSS by mobilizing for replacement of H.E Dr. Riek Machar Teny, First Vice President of the Republic of South Sudan and the Chairman and Commander in Chief of the SPLM/SPLA-IO,”
Oyet asserted that the SPLM-IG political and security apparatus was assisting the suspended officials in carrying out this scheme.
He also said the comrades will appear before a disciplinary committee based on SPLM-IO papers.
In rebuttal, the minister of peace building, Mr. Stephen Phar Kuol referred to his suspension as unilateral and a violation of the party’s regulations and instead accused Oyet of rebelling against the government.
“it is a joke of the year! Nathaniel [Oyet] does not have constitutional powers to do that, he is doing it because he fled and run away, and he does not control anything now. His problem is that he is hearing that we are organizing a National Liberation Council (NLC) meeting,” he explained.
“NLC is the second largest organ of the party between sessions of the convention and the extraordinary convention. We we are going to delink ourselves from them; they are rebels, and we are with the government.” He added.
He empathized that they demand for release of SPLM-/A-IO chairman, call for ceasefire and the peace process to get back on track.
“Overthrow whom militarily or politically? This is nonsense because there is no document like that. The group inside here (Juba), our position is very clear: we call for the release of our chairman, we call for a ceasefire and the peace process on track, and that is the policy position of everybody, including the chairman,” Par added.
The Minister of Peacebuilding insisted that they had not committed any misconduct to warrant being suspended, citing that should there be anything a disciplinary and political bureau had to probe first.
“Where is he anyway? Is he in Juba? You do not run to the bush to start agitating things that are not happening because there is no document or any declaration that we have made yet to dismiss Riek Machar. Even if we do that, it will be unconstitutional,” he clarified
“Because the only organs of the party that can remove anybody from his position is the convention carried out by the Political Bureau and the National Liberation Council, and that is the thing we are doing. Oyet has actually defected from the SPLM/IO because he left the chairman, the NLC, and the Political Bureau here. If you talk to him, ask him how many members of the Political Bureau are with him in the bushes of South Sudan. What he is doing now is in violation of all our documents,”
African Union mediators arrived in South Sudan’s capital, Juba, this week for talks aimed at averting a new civil war in the country after its First Vice President, Riek Machar, was placed under house arrest last week.
President Salva Kiir has accused Machar, a longtime rival who led rebel forces, of trying to stir up a new rebellion.
Machar’s detention followed weeks of fighting in Nasir of Upper Nile state between the military and the White Army militia. Machar’s forces were allied with the White Army during the civil war, but he denied any links.