The suspended Secretary General of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement Pag’an Amum says that he will not be subject to any committee of investigation, explaining that he will only be held accountable by party organs such as the Political Bureau.

South Sudan’s president and ruling party chairman Salva Kiir suspended Amum on Tuesday and ordered a committee headed by the speaker of the assembly to investigate him.

Amum said “the Secretary General of the party according to the (party) constitution is not subject to committees of investigation. If there is any issue it is to be dealt with directly with the chairman of the party or the Political Bureau or the Liberation Council.”

In an interview with London-based newspaper al-Sharq al-Awsat, Amum defended his performance in the party and warned against a potential split in the party if its internal problems are not resolved within the party’s organs.

Amum and the ousted vice president Riek Machar have both been pushing for meetings of the Political Bureau and National Liberation Council. A general party convention has been repeatedly delayed.

The suspended party official disclosed that he held a meeting with President Kiir just days before the issuance of Tuesday’s decrees, saying: “I met the President in advance and discussed with him the need to call for a meeting of the Political Bureau to discuss the political situation in the country and the current issues of the party, but up till now he has not called the Political Bureau.”

He also acknowledged that he heard of his suspension via the media and social media websites on Tuesday, but noted that he was never directly given the suspension order formally: “When I receive the decision officially then I will scrutinize it as to whether it is in accordance with the party’s constitution or not. If not then I will tell in writing to the President that he has to follow the constitution.”  

He vehemently denied the existence of any personal differences between him and the president, explaining that all the issues are related to the programs of the party and organizational structures within the party.

Since giving this interview, the SPLM official has been ordered by the party chairman not to speak to the media or leave Juba.

Meanwhile, a source close to President Kiir’s office who preferred not to named revealed that the president has started to consult a number of leading figures in the ruling party and the other political forces on the formation of a new government.

The source further confirmed that the president intends to absorb a large number of militias who agreed to terms of amnesty recently and other political leaders in the new government.