Political Parties Council headquarters in Juba - Courtesy

Speaking to Eye Radio as a civil society observer on Tuesday, June 9, Yakani urged the council to demonstrate transparency by disclosing the exact amounts and percentages paid by each group, alongside compliance regarding the prohibition of military wings and geographic membership thresholds.

Yakani stated that the council must verify that no registered party maintains links to armed forces. He noted instances where individuals hold positions within political parties while simultaneously maintaining active ranks or roles within military and security institutions at the national and state levels.

“We need to make sure that the Political Parties Council proves to us that all political parties have met this requirement,” Yakani said.

The activist demanded financial clarity regarding the $75,000 USD registration fee, requesting official disclosure to counter unverified information circulating on social media platforms.

“We’re getting credible information that some parties have never even paid a single fee, but because they want to use an element of dominance and element of being lean or being claiming certain status, that that status should be rewarded by them not being registered,” Yakani stated.

“The Political Parties Council can clearly publish for us lists so that these claims that are loitering in the social media platform or among people are cleared because we believe on evidence from the Political Parties Council that said accuracy and concrete information rather than following individuals that are publishing information in various social media platforms.”

He added: “I think the Political Parties Council leadership have responsibility to publish which party has paid fees and how much have they paid, what percentage.”

“We don’t want to see any party taking advantage of its dominance to undermine the application of the law or the requirement or the rules and regulations of the Political Parties Council,” Yakani noted.

In response to calls for public accountability, James Akol Zakayo of the Political Parties Council confirmed that the regulatory body will ensure maximum transparency regarding party financial disclosures.

“In line with statutory transparency mandates, the PPC will publish an annual consolidated report of these audited accounts directly in the official gazette for public viewing,” Zakayo stated. “We will not keep them here, it will be published, it will be gazetted.”

Additionally, Yakani called for the publication of evidence showing that each registered entity has mobilized the required number of members across at least eight states.

While expressing support for the steps taken by the council leadership, Yakani urged the body to maintain legal standards without compromise to ensure the legitimacy of the political process.