Africa-Press – South-Sudan. JUBA — South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) is reportedly recruiting in Northern Bahr el Ghazal state with a senior government official in Aweil describing the conscription as ‘normal security procedure’ by the organized forces.
Speaking to Sudans Post this morning, a senior South Sudan government official in Aweil on the ticket of the main armed opposition SPLM-IO said they have gathered information that the SSPDF has graduated around 383 soldiers recruited recently and is training 400 more.
“This is to inform you that that the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) is recruiting in Northern Bahr el Ghazal state and have evidence that at least 383 trainees have been graduated and that was on Friday,” the opposition government official said.
“There are some who are still being trained and they are being training at the same place where the first graduates were trained. They are 400 in number and we expect them to graduate in the next few weeks,” the official added.
The official said the training is being conducted at Mathiang SSPDF military barrack in Northern Bahr el Ghazal state capital Aweil and urged peace monitors to come in for investigation of the matter.
“The training is done at Mathiang military base and we are calling on the CTSAMVM to come in an investigate because the authorities in Juba are refusing the graduation of the unified forces meanwhile they are training and graduating new recruits,” he said.
When contacted by Sudans Post, a senior government official who refused to be named said he does not have information as to if a recruitment is taking place, but said “any decision for recruitment of new security forces is a normal procedure and no one should be concerned a lot.”
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