Lual Dau, the spokesperson of South Sudan Opposition Movement Alliance speaking to the media in Nairobi on Friday afternoon, December 14, 2024 - Credit: Lou Nelson/Eye Radio

The spokesperson of South Sudan Opposition Movement Alliance and other opposition groups says the Tumaini peace initiative has reached a deadlock.

Speaking to the media in Nairobi on Friday afternoon, December 14, Lual Dau blames the government delegation, saying it has reneged on the protocols initiated between the previous government delegation and the opposition.

This came after Puot Kang, the deputy head of the government delegation announced to the media that they are taking a brief break for consultations with leadership in Juba before resuming discussions, clarifying that the Tumaini initiative has not collapsed.

Kang stated that the government is committed to the peace process. However, Dau claimed that the new government team had come with the bad intention of rejecting the Tumaini consensus.

Dau said the government delegation has walked out of the talks, defying the decision and appeal of Kenyan President William Ruto not to allow the talks to be adjourned.

“The leadership of SSOMA and other opposition groups would like to inform the people of South Sudan, the region and the international community that the Tumaini negotiations are deadlock,” Dau stated during a media briefing in Nairobi Kenya.

“The new government delegation came with a new position reneging and denying the agreed eight Tumaini protocols,” he said.

“It is clear that the government did not only change the delegation, but it has changed its position, instead of focusing on the resumption of the Tumaini initiative on negotiating responsibility sharing protocol being the only outstanding issue,” he added.

“The government wanted to reopen all the protocols and renegotiate the Tumaini consensus from the beginning again.”

Lual Dau reiterated the opposition’s commitment to finalising the responsibility-sharing protocol to conclude the Tumaini initiative.