Peace committee endorses Par Kuol as SPLM-IO leader
By Aguok Chok
The High-Level Standing Committee (HLSC) for the implementation of the 2018 peace agreement on Thursday endorsed Minister of Peace Building Stephen Par Kuol as the interim leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO).
The announcement was made by the Minister of Cabinet Affairs, Dr. Martin Elia Lomuro, who doubles as the chairperson of the HLSC.
“They now have full rights to fill gaps in the High-Level Committee or any mechanism,” Dr. Lomuro told the press in Juba.
“We urge all parties to the agreement to refrain from making statements that contradict the fact that the agreement is alive and active.”
He argued that the latest decision aligns with the government’s April 26 roadmap to manage the ongoing political crisis and accelerate the implementation of elections.
“The peace agreement is alive, active and is being implemented,” Dr. Lomuro asserted.
On his part, Stephen Par Kuol welcomed the endorsement and acknowledged the committee’s support.
“The SPLM-IO interim leadership was unanimously recognized by the committee, which comprises all parties to the peace agreement,” he said. “They recognized us as the legitimate representative of the SPLM-IO as a party to the peace agreement, and we are grateful for that.”
Par, who was briefly detained by the national security during the upsurge of political tensions in the country in March, was later released after spending a day behind bars.
But some of his senior comrades, including the petroleum minister and chairman, remain behind bars to date.
Upon his release, Par would then organize a SPLM-IO consultation meeting in Juba, in which he was elected unopposed as the interim chairperson of the SPLM/A-IO by some party members present in the meeting
Par said the decision was made by members of the National Liberation Council (NLC) to stabilize the opposition party amid political tensions in the aftermath of deadly clashes in Nasir.
The NLC also named Losuba Ludoru Wongo, the National Minister of Federal Affairs, as Deputy Chairperson, replacing Oyet Nathaniel Pierino, the First Deputy Speaker of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly, who fled to exile.
Meanwhile, former National Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning, Agok Makur Kur, was appointed as Secretary General, taking over from Regina Joseph Kaba.
The question now remains whether the position of the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC) and other peace stakeholders will or not endorse the decision of the High-Level Standing Committee.
