The Vice President of South Sudan James Wani Igga has revealed that the president will reschedule a speech that he canceled on Friday for Wednesday next week in parliament. He says the speech will focus partly on economic issues.

“Our chairman of the SPLM is going to deliver in the upcoming opening of the NLA [National Legislative Assembly]... on the 18th, next Wednesday,” Igga said Friday at a ruling party event. “This is where he is going to deliver the statement which people were anxiously waiting for yesterday.”

“And we believe that is the right place. And it is mostly, not entirely, going to be addressing our economic plight, the plight of our people economically,” added the vice president.

Rumors had circulated in Juba as to why the president's speech on Thursday was canceled. One report said that the state-run media SSTV did not have enough fuel to run its transmitters to air the speech, but this was denied by a media source familiar with the matter, who said that only Equator TV had faced this problem.

Sources instead told Radio Tamazuj that the delay was caused by rifts among supporters of Kiir over what they wanted him to say, which prompted him to reschedule the speech at the last minute. It was not the first time that Kiir has canceled a public speech; he failed to address an organized public rally upon returning to Juba from Addis Ababa in August following his decision not to sign a peace deal with Riek Machar on 17 August.

Kiir’s speech was scheduled for 10:00 on Thursday morning but was pushed to 11:00 without any explanation. At 11:00, Presidential Press Secretary Ateny Wek pushed the time by 20 more minutes.

At 11:30, Ateny told the gathered reporters, cabinet ministers, legislators and members of the diplomatic community to switch off their phones, claiming that the president was entering to address the nation. Those waiting complied and switched off cellphones but the president did not show up.

After about 11:30 Ateny realized the president was not coming and he and Information Minister Michael Makuei gave unprepared statements about why the president had not come.

Sources at the presidency claimed the address was canceled because hardliners wanted to include in the speech the issue of the recent 'Establishment Order' and to mention the reservations of the government on the IGAD peace agreement if they were to proceed with implementation. Others wanted the speech to address peace implementation, security arrangements with the rebels, and how to address the economic situation.