The government has rejected a foreign lawyer the IGAD has nominated to chair the National Constitutional Amendment Committee of South Sudan.

The August peace deal requires IGAD – the regional body which mediated the peace talks – to appoint a person with legal capacity to oversee the constitutional amendment.

Information minister Michael Makuei Lueth, claims that P.L.O Lumumba, a renown Kenyan lawyer, would not play an impartial role as the chair of the committee.

“Professor Lumumba, who caused us a problem; we know him very well. He is an [SPLM]-IO person, even though he is a Kenyan,” Mr Makuei told a press conference in Juba on Thursday.

It’s unclear how Prof ‘messed’ with the government during a round of peace talks in Ethiopia.

The other signatories to the peace agreement, the SPLM-IO and former detainees, are yet to respond to the nomination of Professor Lumumba.

Who’s PLO Lumumba?

Prof Lumumba served as the director of Kenya anti-corruption commission from September 2010 to August 2011.

The 53-year-old is currently the Director of The Kenya School of Laws since the year 2014. He’s an orator; and he holds a PhD in Laws of the sea from the University of Ghent in Belgium.

NCAC

The National Constitutional Amendment Committee is mandated to complete the tasks necessary to prepare for the interim period and form the transitional government of national unity.

The mandate of the committee, according to the peace document, shall also extend up to a maximum of 12 months into the transition period to draft new or revise, as appropriate, other legislations provided in the agreement.

The peace document stipulates that the NCAC shall be composed of eight members nominated as follows and chaired by a representative of IGAD:

Two from the government of South Sudan, 2 from the SPLM-IO, 1 from the Former Detainees, 1 from other political parties, and 2 representative from IGAD.