Kiir reportedly ‘delegated’ unidentified powers to his first deputy

JUBA – South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit has reportedly delegated more powers to his first deputy, Dr. Riek Machar Teny, who is also the country’s main armed opposition leader, two high-profile sources have said.

The two men signed a revitalized version of a 2015 peace agreement in September 2018 to end a bloody civil war that has killed almost half a million people and displaced millions to internal IDP and refugee camps abroad.

International observers have doubted the level of commitment to peace of the two rivals whose wrangle over who should lead the SPLM party triggered one of the largest refugee crisis in December 2013.

Speaking to Sudans Post this morning, a presidency official who asked not to be named denied deteriorating relationship between the two men over the sticky implementation of the revitalized peace agreement saying Kiir has gone as far as delegating some of his powers to Machar.

“These are reports by anti-peace elements. The President and the First Vice President are in a good relationship and are working hand-in-hand to make sure that the reconciliation that is badly needed by our county starts with them,” the official said.

“One of the indication that there is a good working relationship between the two leaders is that the President has delegated some of his powers to Machar which have not been provided for in the agreement. He did this by himself for the sack of developing working relationship with his brother,” the official added.

The senior government official however could not tell what powers the president has delegated to Machar. A second source at the presidency further confirmed the development, but also “cannot mention them because this is a sensitive issue and I am not allowed to speak to the media on this particular case.”

Machar was a close ally of the President before they broke apart in December 2013. During the 2010 elections, Machar campaigned for the election of Kiir as his running mate leading to a landslide victory for the then President of the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS).