January 24th 2019 (Nyamilepedia) – The SPLM-IO led by the country’s former First Vice-President Dr. Riek Machar said on Thursday that an original text agreed upon by the National Constitutional Amendment Committee (NCAC) on the issue of governance has been altered without their knowledge.
In a letter addressed to the Chairperson of the National Constitutional Amendment Committee (NCAC) , Gichira Kibara, the group said they regret to learn of the changes made to the original text agreed upon by the parties to the NCAC.
“We have learnt with dismay the changes made in the text of Option (I) contrary to what had been adopted on the 13th December 2018 in the minutes of the 27th November 2018 (on page 7) by the members of the NCAC plenary,” the letter signed by Oyet Nathaniel Pierino who is representating the SPLM-IO in the NCAC.
Speaking to the Nyamilepedia on Thursday, Nathaniel who is also the SPLM-IO governor of Imatong state said the initial text agreed by the parties reads: “South Sudan is governed on the basis of a decentralized democratic system and is an all embracing homeland for its people. It is a multi-ethnic, multi- cultural, multi-lingual, multi-religious and multi-racial entity where such diversities peacefully co-exist provided that during transitional period the RTGNU shall implement a devolved system of governance in which more powers and resources shall be transferred to the lower forms of government as shall be agreed by the parties.”
The new text the group protests reads as: “South Sudan is governed on the basis of a decentralized democratic system and is an all embracing homeland for its people. It is a multi-ethnic, multi- cultural, multi-lingual, multi-religious and multi-racial entity where such diversities peacefully co-exist provided that during transitional period the RTGNU shall devolve more powers and resources to the lower forms of government as shall be agreed by the parties.”
“We regret this unfortunate manipulation of official documents and decisions which we feel was intended to pre-determine outcome,” the letter added.
The letter further added that the SPLM-IO would like “to register an objection to this un-procedural exercise. We advise that NCAC should wait for official clarification from RJMEC pursuant to provision of article 1.18.6 as raised in its Report on the process of incorporation of R-ARCSS as submitted to RJMEC.”
