The ruling SPLM Party in Jonglei State has slammed a group of opposition soldiers who allegedly burned party T-shirts after a political rally in Nyirol County over the weekend.
Nyirol County is controlled by the opposition SPLM-IO led by First Vice President Riek Machar.
Speaking to Radio Tamazuj Tuesday, Nyirol County Commissioner James Bol Makuey, who also doubles as the county SPLM party chairperson, said armed forces allied to the opposition SPLM-IO burned SPLM T-shirts in Langkien town.
He said that the incident occurred when two of their cadres were returning home after attending a rally in which party leader Salva Kiir’s presidential bid was endorsed. The official demanded that those involved be investigated and apprehended.
“The rally ended peacefully. While two of our cadres were returning to their places through SPLA-IO barracks, they were arrested and had their T-shirts confiscated, only to be subsequently burnt. The red colour of our T-shirts signals bloodshed by our martyrs during the liberation wars, and it was very irresponsible of SPLA-IO forces to burn these T-shirts,” he stressed.
The county commissioner condemned the incident as a violation of the 2018 peace deal.
“I bring this to you as the media so that SPLM-IO knows that what they did was not good. As a commissioner, there is nothing I can do because SPLM-IO forces are the ones in control of the county. So, I don’t have powers to arrest them,” he said.
SPLA-IO officers in the county could not immediately be reached for comment.
However, Michael Bol, the Jonglei State SPLM-IO Secretary-General, said they are unaware of the burning of SPLM T-shirts in Lankien town.
“We learnt that SPLM planned to hold a political rally in Nyirol County, and we directed our supporters to accord them respect and not interfere. That there was an incident involving burning of SPLM T-shirts, we are not aware as SPLM-IO leadership,” he said.
“If it is true that such an incident occurred, then it was done by individuals whose action was not representative of SPLM-IO. They should be held accountable accordingly. We are for peace, and we cannot be complicit in any acts that violate the peace agreement,” he added.
This incident came after the opposition SPLM-IO accused Twic East County officials of turning away their delegation, who had intended to hold a political rally in the area the same day.
As South Sudan is preparing for its first-ever national elections in December 2024, significant concerns exist not only about the country’s human rights situation but also about the absence of key conditions for the holding of free, fair, secure, and credible elections and about the absence of an enabling environment for civil society, political parties and the independent media.