Gatwech dismisses William Gatjiath after decamping from Kit Gwang
The Kit Gwang faction’s interim chairperson, Gen Simon Gatwech Dual, has fired the group’s former spokesperson, William Gatjiath.
According to a statement made by Gen Simon Gatwech’s office, the expulsion follows the desertion of the SPLM/A-IO Kit Gwang group by Gen. Gattiek Diar and Gen. William Gatjiath Deng who departed Khartoum, Sudan’s capital, for Juba without alerting the leadership.
Gen. Gattiek Diar and Gen. William Gatjiath Deng were part of the faction’s delegation in Khartoum, negotiating on their behalf.
The desertion of the two generals did not come as a surprise to the SPLM/A-IO breakaway group, according to Cde James Kalany Mamuon, Simon Gatwech’s Press Secretary. Mamuon said the two generals had expressed a ‘‘shift in behaviour and sentiments toward SPLM-IO Kit Gwang since their arrival in Khartoum.’’
“The leadership of SPLM/SPLA-IO Kit Gwang would like to inform its members and the public that it confirms the desertion of the abovementioned generals, who happened to have left Khartoum for Juba today, Friday, January 14, 2022”.
Before defecting to the SPLM/A-IO kit Gwang group under Simon Gatwech in August 2021, William Gatjiath was the former military spokesperson of SPLA-IO under the leaders of the First Vice President Dr Riek Machar.
Gatwech promoted him from Brigadier to Lieutenant General, just days before the group flew to Khartoum for discussions with President Salva Kiir’s government.
The choice of the two generals, according to Gatwech’s press secretary, will not affect “our movement’s interest and commitment to achieving its mission.”
“Due to their desertion, we urge our former military spokesman to hand over the documents and the stamps, since he is no longer our military mouthpiece”.
On the request of the inter-governmental authority on development, Gen. Simon Gatwech and members of his entourage returned to Khartoum last week for a formal meeting with the government of South Sudan under President Salva Kiir (IGAD).
The discussions between President Kiir’s administration and the SPLM/A-IO breakaway faction are part of regional efforts to end the country’s violent conflict.
President Kiir offered to move the negotiations between Kit Gwang and his administration to Juba last year November, but Gen. Gatwech declined, stating that he preferred to engage in talks with the government outside of Juba.
On the other hand, he revealed that his faction is committed to a peaceful resolution of the country’s crisis and that he is willing to work with the SPLM-IO to do so.
He stated that his faction is ready to talk to any party that is prepared to listen to them, and expressed hope for a peaceful resolution to the SPLM-internal IO’s conflict.
