Matik Kueth
Africa-Press – South-Sudan. The government spokesperson, Michael Makuei, blasted the international community, saying it is to blame for South Sudan’s decision to deploy unified forces with no arms.
Addressing the media in Juba on Tuesday, Makuei said the government hurriedly deployed the forces with sticks after learning that the international community did not yield to the request to lift the arms embargo.
“We deployed them with sticks and we did it. This is what the international community wants. They want us to deploy them with sticks and they decided to sanction us on the arms embargo so that we don’t buy more arms,” Makuei said.
He added, “We have been telling the international community that if we graduate these forces with sticks, will you call them security forces? Anyway, we have been telling them all the time that you should lift the arms embargo so that a good Samaritan can give us arms. But up to now, they are not doing it, we have deployed them.”
He added that Phase Two would soon enter the cantonment sites and the training centres.
“But this time, the mistake in Phase One will not repeat itself. Phase one was supposed to hand over their arms, and then go to the cantonment site, this is where you hand over your rifle,” he said.
He added, “What happened in phase one was that all the soldiers from the arms groups decided to come directly from the centres without passing through the cantonment site, leaving their arms behind.”
“The SSPDF left their arms with their commands and they went to the training centre. Now, these forces have been removed. The SSPDF have their arms and the other forces don’t have arms. This is the situation we have now, which will not repeat itself in phase two. Anybody coming to the cantonment site must come with his or her rifle. So, if you don’t come with your rifle, you might be sent to DDR,” he explained.
In 2023, the National Transitional Committee (NTC) kicked off the long-awaited deployment of the Necessary Unified Forces (NUF) by sending 1,000 troops to Upper Nile State with no arms.
According to Makuei, the training of the second phase of the necessary unified forces will commence soon to fast-track the implementation of the security arrangements in the roadmap.
Source: The City Review South Sudan
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