January 30th 2019 (Nyamilepedia) – The main armed opposition group led by the country’s former First Vice President, Dr. Riek Machar Teny, said on Tuesday that it want the alleged forceful military recruitment in Twic state to be addressed.
Last week, several sources told the Nyamilepedia that South Sudan military have stepped up a forceful conscription in Twic state with several youth calling for the government to provide explanation as to why the government is recruiting at a time when the parties are working to end the ongoing civil war.
Speaking to SSBC on Tuesday following a meeting with President Kiir at the Presidential Palace in Juba, the SPLM-IO Deputy Chairperson, Hendry Odwar, who is also the Deputy Chairperson of the National Pre-Transitional Committee (NPTC) said the reports of recruitment in Twic need to be addressed if people were to follow peace.
“We also talked about alleged recruitment in Twic county and other parts of South Sudan and this I think [is] something we have to address and make sure that we go according to the peace in spirit and letter,” he said.
He denied reports that the SPLM-IO is also recruiting into its ranks but said there are movement of “people” already in the ranks of the rebel group going to assembly and cantonment areas.
“There is no mobilization going on within the [ areas under SPLM] IO. Yes, there are people who are going to the assembly areas, there are people who are going to o cantonment so if this is being taken as mobilization I think this should be erased from everybody’s mind,” he added.
“We assure the President that nothing like that taking place,” he added.
South Sudan President, Salva Kiir, and opposition leader Dr. Riek Machar Teny-Dhurgon signed a long-awaited revitalized version of a 2015 peace deal in September 2018 in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.
This came following months of intense talks between parties in Khartoum who then had only August 5th to reach a preliminary deal.
