Africa-Press – South-Sudan. South Sudan’s main armed opposition Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) led by First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny has reiterated previous claims that the ruling SPLM faction under President Salva Kiir Mayardit is behind continued split among opposition rank and file.
This comes after Amb. Ismail Wais, the special envoy of Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) for South Sudan, called on the main armed opposition group to cease defection, saying it undermines their strength among partners in the implementation of the revitalized peace agreement they signed with the government in 2018.
Speaking in an interview with the Juba-based UN Radio Miraya on Monday morning, Wais revealed that a delegation is about to step on plane to travel to Sudan where they will be going to Magenis and Kitgwang to investigate the recent split within the SPLM-IO to find out what was behind the SPLM-IO infighting.
Wais then said the SPLM-IO was becoming weaker and weaker before its peace partners owing to continued splits, defection and internal fighting urging the Machar-led group to cement its unity so that it return to its political standing which he said is no more.
“Something happened on the ground, and we need to know what happened and what was the cause of these, talk to the people on both sides and find out how we can engage them, but as I said from the very beginning, this is an [SPLM-]IO internal dispute, it is a defection as I said, within the SPLM-IO and we have to see that as such,” Wais said.
“We have to tell the IO to clean their house as such they come to their original strength and also we told them that the more they become weaker, the more they fight and split, this will also weaker their position within the peace process,” he further added.
However, the SPLM-IO Director of Information and Public Relations and Acting Press Secretary in the Office of the First Vice President Puok Both Baluang his group is dismayed by the statements of the IGAD special envoy in which he lamented continued internal fighting and split.
“First of all the SPLM/A-IO regrets to hear such statement from the guarantors of the peace agreement and we believe SPLM/A-IO is still strong and the defections that hit SPLM/A-IO is not a new thing,” Baluang said, as quoted by City Review.
“SPLM-IO is still strong and those who defected from IO are just individuals, they did not leave any impact on the movement and I want to assure Mr. Wais that SPLM/A-IO is still strong in different levels from the political side to the diplomatic side and the army on the ground,” he added.
He then accused the government of President Salva Kiir Mayardit of standing behind the opposition split. “Several times in different platforms, the R-TGoNU of the SPLM-IG is the one making or engineering defections for the aim of weakening the SPLM/A-IO…and we would like to assure the public that we are moving on to implement the agreement to reach its end call,” he said.
“That is why now JDB is forming committees to visit all the training centers to conduct the process of screening all the forces across South Sudan. We are strong, we are not weak to lead in the process of the implementation of the agreement” Baluang added.
