BREAKING: SPLM-IO appoints woman politician as interim Secretary-General

JUBA – South Sudan’s main armed opposition group, SPLM-IO, led by First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny has appointed a woman politician as the group’s interim Secretary-General, according to a senior member of the group.

This comes more than one week after the main armed opposition group’s Secretary-General, Tingo Peter, resigned in a surprise move that triggered backlash among the SPLM-IO supporters and the general public.

In his resignation, Tingo accused Machar of leadership shortcomings and running the group “single-handedly.”

“I, the undersigned Cde Tingo Peter Regbigo Limbo have resigned from the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition the SPLM-I0 as of today Tuesday November 10″, 2020, following your lack of display of good leadership,” Tingo wrote in a resignation letter extended to Sudans Post last week.

The ex-opposition official said: “I have spent seven years working along your side as Deputy Secretary for Agriculture, and Governor of Wau Federal state from (2014 -2016) and as SPLM-IO Secretary General from 2016 to November 2020.”

“During these seven years working with you, you have handled the movement single-handed which led to lack of progress in the movement. During all this period, you have run the movement without transparency, especially when it comes to decision making process, and you did not respect institutional structures established by the party’s constitution.”

Speaking to Sudans Post this evening, Nyenagwek Manayom, a senior SPLM-IO member, said a meeting of the main armed opposition group chaired by Machar this afternoon, endorsed the appointment of Regina Joseph, the group’s Deputy Chairperson for DDR commission, as interim Secretary-General of the group.

“Today, Cde Regina Joseph was appointed as the interim Secretary-General of the movement,” Nyenagwek said. “She will serve under that capacity until the National Convention is held.”

The senior opposition official said around 13 people were running for the position, but they reached a consensus for Regina who hails from Western Bahr el Ghazal state. She further said the National Conference which she said will take place in December will set a date for a National Convention.

“I don’t know when the National Convention is going to take place, but the National Conference which will take place in December will fix a date for the National Convention,” she said in a telephone call from the capital Juba.