The South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Lul Ruai Koang has dismissed claims of a confrontation with the SPLA-IO forces in Nagero County in Western Equatoria State.
Koang also denied claims that the road leading to Western Bahr el-Ghazal State has been closed.
Nagero County Commissioner Henry Bangada had on Friday evening told Radio Tamazuj that tension started earlier in the week after the SSPDF forces from the 6th Infantry Division forced out the SPLA-IO forces from their position, leading to the closure of the highway.
Bangada said the SSPDF forces informed him that they wanted to visit his county and he welcomed them, and told them that the forces with him in Nagero were deployed to Tambura to calm the situation.
“They spent the night in Nagero and in the morning, they said they were going to Mbo, the border of Western Bahr el-Ghazal and Western Equatoria,” he added.
“I have since received a complaint that these forces were going to deploy their soldiers in the area controlled by SPLA-IO.
“As I speak to you, the road leading to Wau is closed and the situation in my county is bad and civilians are sleeping in the bushes,” he said.
The Commissioner called on the government to intervene.
“Tension is high and the civilians were fleeing Nagero County,” he added.
“There is a risk of war because civilians are not free to move on the Wau-Yambio road, after the deployment without my consultation. It is not official because I did not get official directives allowing SSPDF deployment,” he said.
However, Koang dismissed the allegations.
“I got in touch with the relevant authorities regarding what you have reported in Karbori- Mbo in Western Equatoria State. If you could remember, last year, there was a governorship forum oversighted by the President that made several resolutions, including dismantling illegal checkpoints,” said Koang.
“In Western Equatoria, there was a resistance from SPLA-IO over a misunderstanding that was successfully resolved and after three to four days ago, the illegal road blocks set up by the SPLA-IO at-Mbo on the high way connecting Western Equatoria and Western Bahr el Ghazal states were removed,” he added.
The Spokesperson pointed out that the Commissioner’s report was inaccurate because it was from Yambio rather than from Nagero County.
“It appears that the Commissioner was not reporting from the ground, he was reporting from Yambio,” he said.
“The misunderstanding was successfully resolved through the mechanisms that I told you and we at Kaburi-Mbo have not received any information about an army confrontation,” he added.