In a strongly worded statement, SSPDF Spokesperson Maj. Gen. Lul Ruai Koang cautioned that areas where Oyet had recently reappointed local leaders were likely to experience renewed violence.
He specifically mentioned Nyirol and Pigi counties in Jonglei State, where Peter Gatkuoth Kong and Chol Kuol Chol were appointed commissioners, respectively.
Lul also singled out Maban in Upper Nile State, where Joseph Ali Daffa Botho was appointed as an “Acting Commissioner”, and Western Equatoria State, where former governor Lt. Gen. Alfred Futuyo was reinstated.
Maj. Gen. Lul accused Oyet of creating “parallel civil administrations” in predominantly Nuer counties as part of what he described as a dangerous political strategy that could reignite conflict.
Since April, President Salva Kiir has relieved most of the commissioners and governors affiliated with the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition under the leadership of Riek Machar, replacing them with members of the party’s breakaway section led by Stephen Par Kuol in contravention of the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in South Sudan.
While Oyet maintained that his move aims to preserve the agreement, Lul said the decision to restore officials who had earlier been relieved from their positions was destabilizing and aimed at mobilizing local populations into renewed hostilities against government forces.
He cited the September 2 attack on SSPDF positions in Mathiang Town, headquarters of Longchuk County in Upper Nile State, as an example of the dangers posed by the reinstatements.
According to him, the attack was co-commanded by Dak Tut Dei, a former commissioner of Longchuk who was reappointed by Oyet and ordered to launch operations against government forces. The clash, he said, resulted in “catastrophic losses” for the attackers.
The SSPDF spokesperson also appealed directly to the Lou-Nuer community, urging them not to allow themselves to be drawn into fighting on behalf of political figures.
“Out of my love for you, I sincerely appeal to you to keep out of the looming large-scale operations being planned by Rt. Hon. Nathaniel Oyet,” Lul said in a statement.
He further accused the SPLM-IO acting chairman of attempting to use communities outside his own Acholi ethnic group to wage conflict, while distancing himself from the consequences.
The warning comes amid heightened tensions between the SSPDF and SPLM-IO, raising fears of renewed clashes in already fragile regions of Jonglei, Upper Nile, and Western Equatoria states.
