Kiir dismisses Machar, Pagan from SPLM, declares end of Arusha reunification deal

JUBA – President Salva Kiir Mayardit has dismissed First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny and Pagan Amum Okiech from the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) party and declared end of the Arusha SPLM reunification agreement.

Machar is the leader of the main armed opposition Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO), while Pagan is the head of the holdout Real SPLM which is negotiating a peace deal with the government in Italy.

According to a communique released by the SPLM on Friday morning, the decision to remove the two former senior members of the party was reached during a meeting of the political bureau chaired by President Kiir on Thursday night.

The communique said the two men have lost their membership of the SPLM party since forming their own political parties and recommended to the National Liberation Council to effect the decision during its next meeting.

Peter Lam Both, the Interim Secretary-General of the SPLM, said all former members of the SPLM political bureau including former detainees have returned to their previous positions with exception of Machar who was the [first deputy chair, and Amum who was the secretary-general.

“The Political Bureau also recommends to the national liberation council the replacement of Comrade Pagan Amum and Comrade Riek Machar from the structure of the SPLM as they already profited from their memberships by establishing other political parties,” he said.

The senior SPLM official further revealed that the membership of the political bureau has been increased to 35 and that the SPLM-IO for peace under Vice President Taban Deng Gai has dissolved itself and become a part of the SPLM.