Elvince Joshua
Africa-Press – South-Sudan. A Member of Parliament (MP) has cautioned that parties led by people with past military backgrounds might arouse suspicion when they carry out mobilisation.
Mayen Deng Alier, an MP in the Reconstituted Transitional National Legislative Assembly (R-TNLA) said that the delay in enacting the Political Parties Act has stirred complaints about the political space.
According to Alier, entrusting formerly armed parties with mobilization is dangerous.
“There might be political space but if you are going there as a warring party and not fully registered as a political party, then the suspicion might come as if you are going to do military recruitment instead of a simple political mobilisation,” Mayen stated.
He added that societal belief is is that police and the army were directed toward a specific political party that they adored more than the rest.
“You know our armed forces, like the security, the police, the army; they have been politicized and they seem to have allegiance to a certain political entity or a group of political entities compared to others.
“I believe for some of us, who are in OPP and other parties, are free to hold their rallies. But (for) any party that was initially armed, it is hard for them to be allowed to hold political rallies.”
Mayen advised that such military parties that are parties to the agreement should be allowed to carry out rallies but with a stern warning not to turn it into military mobilisation, or political mobilisation.
On Tuesday, the Interim Secretary General of SPLM/A-IO, Regina Joseph Kaba, stated that shrinking political space imperils the country’s transition to a multiparty system.
She noted that the security obstructed other political parties from exercising their political rights freely.
“This country is used to one party. They are not used to a multiparty system and seeing other parties practising it seem to them like they don’t also have their rights. But we are now moving towards a multiparty system,” she said.
“So for us to do that, we need to open the political space, for all the parties and that is the reason that we have not been seen, it is because of all this limited political space.”
The SPLM/A-IO Secretary for Information and Communication, Karlo Andrew Akwo, called on the government of Lakes State to grant other parties to the agreement political rights.
“We experienced in Lakes State limited political space; therefore, we call upon the government of Lakes State to open the political space and grant the citizens freedom of expression,” Karlo stated.
However, the SPLM Interim Secretary-General, Peter Lam Both, said during SPLM mass mobilization stated that SPLM/A-IO had been frustrating SPLM activities in the states where they have enough supporters, yet SPLM allows them to carry out activities smoothly.
“…with the exception of some counties where SPLM-IO commanders are not informed that we are at peace in Juba, they denied SPLM the right to organise in those areas, even as we allow IO elements to enjoy in the areas that we control,” the Lam Both stated.
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