SSOA submits list of nominees, eyes now on Kiir’s decree
The South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA) finally submitted its list of nominees ahead of the unification of command, awaiting a presidential decree. SSOA was allocated even positions, two of which are for national security and one from each section in the command.
The Vice President for Service Delivery Cluster, Hussein Abdelbagi Akol, yesterday met with President Salva Kiir Mayardit, and submitted the list of nominees from SSOA to be integrated into the Unified Command Structure.
The official spokesperson of SSOA, Brig Gen Samuel Shan, yesterday told the City Review, that they had successfully submitted their lists, and it was up to the Presidency to decide on when the command would be announced.
“The list from SSOA is fully submitted today. We will just be waiting for further action from the presidency,” the SSOA Spokesperson noted.
“We are allotted only seven positions in all the six security services. [They include] two positions in national security, one in SSPDF, one in police, one in prison, one in wildlife, and one in people’s defence,” Shan said.
Shan stressed that what they knew was that the deadline for announcing the command structure was yesterday (Monday), but they had not been notified about any delay.
“It will be up to the presidency to decide when to announce, but I don’t know the criteria there. As far as our knowledge is concerned, the deadline for the announcement of the unified command is today, but if there is an extension, it is not yet been brought to our attention, “he concluded.
According to the statement shared on the office of the President’s Facebook Page, President Kiir had received lists from both SSOA and SPLM/A-IO and would form the unified command at the soonest time possible.
“President Salva Kiir Mayardit has now received the lists of the command structures from SPLM/A-IO and SSOA, and soon, the President shall form the Unified Command, a key step towards the implementation of Chapter 2 on the Security Arrangements, the Minister for Presidential Affairs, Dr Barnaba Marial Benjamin said.
Machar submits list
On Friday, the First Vice President, Dr Riek Machar Teny, submitted the list of his movement’s nominees to President Kiir for the unified of command structure.
The Director for Information and Public Relations, and the Acting Press Secretary in the office of the First Vice President, Puok Both Baluang revealed that they were only waiting for the formation of the unified command and the graduation of the unified forces within two months.
Puok noted that “Today, the SPLM/A (IO) submitted its list of nominees for the Unified Command Structure to President Salva Kiir as stipulated in the agreement signed by the parties on Sunday that ended a stalemate over the command structure of the unified forces.”
However, the South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA) Spokesperson, Samuel Shan, said they had not submitted their list because they wanted to first sort out how to share positions among the nine parties that make up SSOA, adding that the list would be ready by Monday (yesterday).
