February 12th 2019 (Nyamilepedia) – South Sudan’s Gen. Peter Gatdet Yaka is still the Chairman of the opposition South Sudan United Movement and Army (SSUM/A) and is working to implement the peace agreement in letter and spirit, the spokesman for the group has said.
In recent weeks, several rebel officials loyal to Gen. Peter Gatdet’s SSUM have announced their discontent with Gatdet’s leadership and thus took the decision to resign and criticize Gatdet for one reason or another.
This week, the Secretary General of the group announced the ouster of Gen. Gatdet as the Chairman of the group saying he is against the peace agreement and is killing senior party members, a claim the Nyamilepedia could not independently verify.
In a statement issued on Monday, the SSUM spokesman, Juan Dar, denied that Gen. Gatdet is for peace saying he continue to enjoy the support of entire SSUM membership slamming the splinter group for power greed.
“South Sudan United Movement (SSUM) Leadership Council, the Chief of Staffs, Deputy Chiefs of Staff and the Military High Command Council [do] hereby NULLIFYING [the]so-called ousting of First Lieutenant General Peter Gatdet Yak, the Chairman and Commander in Chief of the SSUM,” Dar said in a statement seen by the Nyamilepedia.
“General Gatdet Yak has been serving in the army for more than forty (40) years both in Sudan and South Sudan. The experience he has is beyond description, which qualifies him to led the party than a weak honorable [that lack military capacity],” the statement added.
He denied allegation by the former Secretary General that Gatdet has been ordering killings and looting of traders as well as torturing and detention of soldiers in different camps the groups is occupying in South Sudan.
“There is no either killing nor torturing and imprisonment of the officers in our military base as he claimed. All our gallant forces are stable and secure in their barracks executing their national duties without any problem,” he said.
“If such a case of killing is there all soldiers could have deserted the base because no one is paying them money. They are freedom fighters who sacrificed themselves for national duty,” he added.
He further said senior members of the opposition group including including the deputy chairman are in Juba for peace implementation denying allegations that Gatdet himself is against the peace agreement.
“Deney Jock Chagor, Deputy Chairman and Commander-in-Chief, SSUM Representative to Security and Strategic Review Defense Board (SSRDB) Committee are in Juba for peace implementation process. Major General, John Pam Gatjiek, SSUM Representative to Joint Military Ceasefire Commission (JMCC) is [also] in Juba for Security arrangements,” he said.
“Major General, Makum Matop Thian,SSUM Representative to Joint Defense Board (JDB), is [also] in Juba for the preparation of unification[of] forces. Gai Gatduel Chany, Nhial Kamgane Ruai and Machuol Weipan Koang who are our members to CTSAMVT are in Juba for the purpose of implementation of the agreement,” he added.
He further said that “there are no traders operating in the border between Unity State and South Kordofan since outbreak of civil war.”
He criticized the ex-Secretary General for being a dictator who has now joined the FVP Taban Deng Gai to betray the cause of the movement.
” Matut Gatdjuol Kom is not a well cultivated politician who posses any principles leave alone to be the chairman. He signed cheap deal with Taban Deng Gai to rejoin his old camp before crisis, to betray the cause we are fighting for more than five years,” he said.
“If there is tendency of dictatorship within the running affairs of the party,he could have been within the inner circle where dictatorship develop because he is Major General,Secretary of political affairs and mobilization,then General Secretary of the party ,the third man in the profile of the movement,” he added.
