VP Abdelbagi urges South Sudan Islamic community to support 2024 elections

JUBA, OCTOBER 2, 2023 (SUDANS POST) – South Sudan’s Vice President for Service Cluster Hussein Abdelbagi Akol has called on the Muslim community in the world’s youngest country to support the upcoming 2024 elections.

Abdelbagi while speaking during the Mawlid Al-Sherif celebrations on Sunday morning also called on the Muslim community across the country to support the timely conduct of what would be South Sudan’s first-ever elections.

“Also, 15 months from now we will have elections, so we call on the Muslim community to support the elections,” he said.

The vice-president who is representing the South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA), a signatory to the revitalized peace agreement in the peace presidency also called on the Muslim community to support peace and stay away from ethnic violence.

“We, as Muslims, must support peace in the country, with money and with everything we can, spread the spirit of peace, and stay away from strife,” he said.

“There are some disputes between tribes, but these are not political disputes, and the government will soon deploy the unified, graduated forces, 53 thousand individuals, to maintain security in South Sudan,” he added.

Hussein went on to call on the leader of the South Sudan Islamic Council to distribute his powers to other members who would wish to serve the Islamic Comities in South Sudan in order to achieve Unity among Muslims and prevent conflict.

“There were problems that the Islamic community was complaining about regarding the academic curriculum in schools, and these problems have been solved, and soon the subjects of the Arabic language and Islamic education will be adopted in the curriculum,” he revealed.

Akol added that the government of South Sudan will launch books on Islamic Curriculum Soon.

“According to the current year’s fiscal budget, which included printing books on the curriculum, which will include the Arabic language and Islamic education,” he said.

He also called on the Islamic Countries to support the Muslims in South Sudan to construct Islamic Schools and places of worship saying, “We need your support.”

“I also direct that Islamic facilities must provide their services to Muslims and non-Muslims, because we in South Sudan do not differentiate between citizens on the basis of religion,” he added.

The vice-president further assured the Muslims community in South Sudan that the government is committed to allow Muslims to practice their rituals freely.