A national parliamentary committee headed by Daniel Awet Akot has completed its investigation into the political crisis in which the Northern Bahr al Ghazal governor was impeached. The committee has traveled back to the capital Juba.
The committee was appointed last week by the vice president, James Wani Igga, to investigate and report to the Office of the President facts surrounding the circumstances under which the Northern Bahr el Ghazal state caretaker governor, Kuel Aguer Kuel was impeached and the subsequent closure of major roads to and from Aweil town, capital of the state.
The committee was headed by former deputy speaker of the national legislative assembly, Daniel Awet Akot, who is also a senior member of the governing Sudan People’s Liberation Movement faction led by President Salva Kiir.
Tensions rose in Aweil town last week after the state parliament moved to impeach the caretaker governor Kuel Aguer. The governor who is currently in Juba termed the move as ‘unconstitutional’.
The situation escalated further when the state police commissioner Major General Akot Deng allegedly deployed forces, set up roadblocks in the town, and ordered the arrest of local chiefs. The tension was diffused after the SPLA third division commander in the area, Major General Deng Wol, intervened and asked the police commissioner to stand down his forces.
In an attempt to find out the facts, Vice President James Wani Igga in consultation with President Kiir tasked a committee to travel to the state and look into the political dispute within SPLM in the state that led to the controversial impeachment of Kuel Aguer.
The chief whip in the state parliament, Benson Opuothmalo, told Radio Tamazuj on Tuesday the committee had successfully completed its task and had returned to the national capital where they would eventually finalise their report and make submission to the president’s office.
“The committee completed their work yesterday and they left today. They now have facts. They know actually what happened. Some people just wanted to snatch the power in unconstitutional manner, which totally unacceptable,” said Opuothmalo.
The top state legislator said he hoped the government in Juba would take action to remedy the situation now that their investigation committee saw for themselves the facts.
“We hope governor Kuel returns to his position because all procedures were wrong. You cannot impeach a governor in less than three hours and you call it impeachment. There are processes and procedures to be undertaken before the actual voting takes place,” he said.
“Also a caretaker governor is always an interim leader. He was not an elected person. He is appointee of the president for anyone to just do that is a clear insubordination of the president and the entire leadership of the country,” he stressed.
One of the charges made by the MPs who impeached the governor is that he used government funds to start an early campaign for the 2015 general elections.