Juba, South Sudan, 24 May 2021 – The Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC) has raised concerns over the snail-like pace of the security arrangements implementation saying the new government must fast-track the process.
In a statement seen by Nyamilepedia, Charles Tai Gituai, RJMEC Interim Chairperson slammed the lack of political commitment by the government towards expediting peace, especially security arrangements.
Gituai said the intransigency of the government to implement the peace provisions in due time has led many soldiers to abandon cantonment sites.
Expressing frustration over what he described as a chronic shortage of food, lack of medicine, shelter, and lack of hygiene items for women in cantonment areas, Gituai warned that more forces could vacate training centers.
“No graduation and redeployment for Phase One of the Necessary Unified Forces have taken place. Cantonment sites and training centers continue to be abandoned due to a chronic lack of food, medicines, shelter, and hygiene items for women,” Gituai said.
“Now is the time to continue to build political will, strengthen trust and confidence, implement tasks concurrently, especially completing the TSAs, and providing humanitarian assistance, in order to deliver peace dividends for the people of South Sudan,” he emphasized.
“The conditions in both cantonment sites and training centers continue to deteriorate and can only get worse with the onset of the rainy season,” he warned.
Gituai called on the transitional government to allocate the needed funds for the implementation of the security arrangements and to ensure the disarmament, demobilization, and redeployment process.
The government says unable to finance the crucial security arrangements and has called for international support. But Juba is requested first to curb corruption and guarantee transparency in the management of the oil income.
The government is also on record of blaming the arms embargo extended by the United Nations Security Council in May last year for the delay of security arrangements implementation.
However, political analysts say the arms embargo does not in any way affect the implementation of the security arrangements as forces train with wooden sticks.
