Yiep Joseph
Africa-Press – South-Sudan. Just days after announcing the reception of tens of defectors from other political factions, the Secretary-General of the Sudan People Liberation Movement (SPLM), Peter Lam Both, has warned that no reward is in store for those shifting allegiance.
Both issued this warning last week while receiving defectors from the SPLM-IO and Kitwang factions, perhaps sowing more anxiety into the works.
“We don’t ask people to come and join the party (SPLM) in order to become ministers or advisors or something; no, that is not what we do; we have so many cadres in the party already; if we have vacancies, we will bring the old cadres, and then you join the line,” he said.
He urged those who join SPLM with the hope of immediately getting positions to shun such a dream, adding that it will not happen.
“When people come and declare to the SPLM, I am not expecting you to declare that I am declaring because I want to be minister in the SPLM government because we will not give you that; that is not what we do,” he said.
However, the SPLM boss was quick to also point out that they reward outstanding talents. But this may not be a guarantee, as Both put it.
“If you have a special talent that can benefit the party, we will judge you as an individual,” he said.
He appealed to the defectors to always commit themselves and work for the party before attaining positions.
Lam appealed to the new members to register with SPLM in order to benefit from the organization and its services.
“You must have registered here and gotten your ID from SPLM so that you will have rights to the services of SPLM, and SPLM will also have the right to ask you about your membership obligations,” he said.
He added that it is not all what the party gives to its members that counts; what the party can get from its members also counts.
He called the new members to join SPLM training with the hope of equipping them with knowledge.
“The SPLM youth league provides training every Sunday; you must join that training; it’s not only for the youth of age; it’s an ideological training so that you know what SPLM stands for and what it is that we are looking for as an SPLM,” he said.
Lam said that the SPLM will continue with mobilisation to win the upcoming election and provide services to South Sudanese.
More than 100 members of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO), led by First Vice President Riek Machar, and sections of the Kitwang and Agwelek advance teams in Juba joined the SPLM party at the last election.
Political parties such as SPLM-IO, led by First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar, have in the past blamed inducements and dished out government positions as the main reasons that lured defectors to join the ruling party. The civil society activists have equally lashed out at the culture of shifting camps, arguing that it works against the implementation of the peace agreement.
Source: The City Review South Sudan
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