Machar appoints new spokesman for SPLM-IO in leadership reshuffle

JUBA – The leader of South Sudan’s main armed opposition, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO), Riek Machar, has made key appointments, including a new spokesman, to the SPLM-IO leadership council.

In a letter dated December 31, 2023, Machar named Pal Mai Deng, the Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, as the Chairperson of the National Committee for Information and Public Relations, succeeding his predecessor, late Manawa Peter Gatkuoth Gual.

Mai will also serve as the spokesman for the primary armed opposition group.

Additionally, Machar appointed John Dal El Tayeb as the Chairperson of the National Committee for Culture, Youth & Sports, replacing Odhok Oyai, the Governor of Upper Nile State.

The SPLM-IO, established in the aftermath of the outbreak of war in South Sudan in December 2013, signed a revitalized version of the 2015 peace agreement in 2018.

The agreement outlines the transition of all armed groups, including the SPLM-IO, from violent entities to peaceful political organizations.

As South Sudan approaches its first-ever election since gaining independence from Sudan in 2011, the SPLM-IO is anticipated to engage with its sister faction SPLM-IG, led by President Salva Kiir.

However, uncertainty looms over the possibility of holding the election, as Kiir and Machar disagree on whether elections will occur at the end of the transitional period, citing pending provisions of the revitalized peace agreement.

International organizations and South Sudan’s western allies, including the United States, consistently urge the parties to the peace agreement to establish the necessary conditions for a free and transparent election.