Lakes State, South Sudan
February 4, 2022—A dispute has erupted over the swearing in of members of Lakes State’s Reconstituted Assembly, according to senior officials.
Speaking to media in protest of what he terms “unconstitutional and a violation of the Revitalized Peace Agreement”, the Other Political Parties leader, Hon. Peter Mayen Majongdit, strongly condemn the swearing ceremony citing numerous concerns.
In a statement obtained by Nyamilepedia, Hon. Peter Mayen Majongdit, says it’s illegal for members of State Legislative Assembly to conduct the swearing-in process without the presence of the Speaker.
“.. It was wrong to swear-in legislators in the absence of the Speaker of the House, and for a member of the Executive to preside over the swearing in process”,OPP Peter Mayen argued.
The position of the speaker in Lakes state assembly has been allocated to the OPP in the current power sharing arrangement among parties but the group has not nominated its members.
According to the statement, eighty-nine members of Parliament took oath of office in Rumbek on Monday in the presence of the governor Rin Tueny Mabor.
In response, the acting government Spokesperson of the State government, William Koji justified government’s decision and said it was due to OPP’s failure to nominate their candidates.
“.. The state government cannot be held hostage because of the failure of the OPP to nominate their members of state parliament”, Koji said.
