SSOA in another power wrangle over state, local gov’ts positions

JUBA – South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA) is in another power struggle after the opposition consortium’s chairperson, Josephine Lagu, rejected to include other members of the Alliance to participate in a meeting aimed at dividing position in the country’s Greater Equatoria region.

This comes as the parties to the revitalized peace agreement are preparing for formation of state governments following last month’s consensus in which the SSOA, SPLM-IO, and SPLM-IG, met and agreed to divide positions at the state level.

In a statement on Sunday, five members of the South Sudan Opposition Alliance, namely, National Democratic Movement (NMD), South Sudan United Movement (SSUM), South Sudan Liberation Movement (SSLM), the Federal Democratic Party (FDP), and South Sudan Patriotic Movement (SSPM), said in a statement that Josephine is denying them positions in the Equatoria region.

“On 26 October 2020 we raised a complaint against three (3) constituent SSOA organizations led by Ms Josephine Lagu and Mr Joseph Bakosoro when they decided to exclude the other SSOA constituent organizations from participation in the governments of three (3) Equatoria States. They want to distribute the positions among themselves alone. They refused that we take part in the meeting of the Equatoria Committee assigned to decide on the allocation of government positions in the Equatoria region.

“Afterwards, the two were directed by a SSOA leadership meeting to meet all SSOA organizations that have members in Equatoria. They did not heed the directives but continued to exclude our organizations. This fact was confirmed by a report rendered to SSOA leadership meeting by Josephine Lagu on the 8th of November.

“The report was rejected and the Equatoria region Committee she chairs was directed again to meet with the participation of all organizations and discuss and agree on the allocations. The committee did not meet as directed and Josephine Lagu went with the same report to the SSOA leadership meeting on the 10.

“Currently, the three organizations are continuing with their secret meetings without the participation of the other five (5) member organizations of SSOA. The three (3) Equatoria States have fifty-six (56) positions for SSOA including a Deputy Speaker, six (6) Ministers, three (3) Advisors, three (3) County Commissioners and six (6) Chairpersons and Deputy Chairpersons of Independent Commissions.

“These are the positions the three would want to divide among themselves to the exclusion of the other five organizations. Such greediness is shockingly unbelievable. It is to be noted that members of these three organizations in Bahr El Ghazal and Upper Nile regions were given positions there, why deny Equatorians their rightful participation in their own region? Such a behaviour is a clear violation of the SSOA Charter and Regulations. In this regard, we therefore resolved the following:

“We will not in any way recognize the nominations they make. Since they are not ready to engage with all the SSOA organizations to discuss the allocations in Equatoria region, we are left with no option but to use all in our ability to see that justice prevails and that some people don’t deny others the fruits of their labour.”