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Govt team was restructured to speed up Tumaini Initiative – says Kiir

Author: Nyathong William | Published: November 26, 2024

FILE PHOTO: Gen. Kuol Manyang Juuk, one of the Deputy Chairpersons of SPLM and Senior Presidential Advisor - Credit: Office of the President - January 5, 2024

President Salva Kiir said his decision to restructure the government delegation to the Tumaini Initiative was intended to accelerate and successfully conclude the peace process.

In his opening remarks at the 8th Governors Forum, the President clarified that the Kenya-led peace talks with South Sudan Opposition Movement Alliance is is meant to complement the 2018 peace deal and not replace it.

Kiir said the delegation’s reconstitution is designed to address concerns from various stakeholders and integrate their input into the existing peace framework.

“My recent decision to restructure the government delegation to the Tumaini Initiative peace process that is taking place in Nairobi, Kenya, is informed by the need to speed up and conclude the negotiation process,” he said.

“It is also important to make it clear that the Tumaini Initiative was not intended to negotiate a new parallel peace agreement aimed to replace or dismantle the existing peace agreement which we had signed in 2018.”

According to him, the transitional government is open to working collaboratively with all stakeholders to address and accommodate the reservations expressed by various parties within the framework of the existing agreement.

The peace negotiation between the government and SSOMA is set for resumption in late November after facing several setbacks since June in 2024.

The government had failed for weeks to send its delegation as agreed to Nairobi to finalize the Tumaini Initiative aimed at including holdout opposition groups (SSOMA) and hastening the 2018 peace implementation.

This prompted SSOMA and its allies to criticize Juba’s delay and the newly reconstituted government delegation, claiming it is composed of “anti-Tumaini elements.”

In a press statement seen by Eye Radio, the alliance also said the transitional government is reneging on the faith and unwillingness to conclude the Tumaini peace process.

But Cabinet Minister Dr. Martin Elia Lomuro denied allegations that the transitional government has resorted to delaying tactics to smother the Nairobi peace talks intended to bring about an inclusive transitional process.

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