The parliamentary caucus of the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) has voted overwhelmingly to remove Speaker Jemma Nunu Kumba from her position, several lawmakers said on Tuesday, marking the first time the party has sought to oust a speaker through a vote of no confidence.
South Sudan has a bicameral legislature comprising the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) as the lower house and the Council of States as the upper chamber.
Under the 2018 revitalised peace agreement, the national legislative assembly includes members of opposition parties, with the SPLM holding a majority of 332 out of 550 seats.
The agreement allocates the position of speaker of the TNLA to the SPLM, with an emphasis on representation from the Equatoria region.
Two SPLM lawmakers, speaking to Radio Tamazuj on condition of anonymity, said the decision to remove Nunu was reached during a caucus meeting in Juba on Tuesday.
“I would like to confirm that it is true. There is a move like that. We have already communicated our position today,” one lawmaker said.
“We have communicated our position to the SPLM chairperson, who has taken note of our concerns as members of parliament. The leadership will now take up the matter,” the lawmaker added.
“We have just concluded the meeting of the SPLM caucus, where we presented our concerns to the chair. We do not yet know what decision the chairman will take, but our concerns have been received,” he said, declining to provide specific reasons for the move, noting that discussions were ongoing pending a decision by the party leadership.
Five Candidates
Another SPLM lawmaker said the caucus had recommended Nunu’s removal and submitted a list of candidates from which President Salva Kiir, also the SPLM leader, is expected to select a replacement.
He revealled that the names submitted for consideration include Betty Achan Ogwaro, Tulio Odongi, Josephine Napwon Cosmos, Joseph Ngere Paciko, and Joy Kwaje.
The lawmaker said the SPLM caucus also recommended the removal of the deputy speaker for finance and administration and the deputy clerk in the transitional legislative assembly, citing poor management and alleged corruption under Speaker Jemma Nunu’s administration.
It remains unclear whether Kiir will remove Nunu, who is considered one of his close allies.
Nunu was nominated by the SPLM in July 2021 and unanimously endorsed by parliament on August 2, 2021, becoming South Sudan’s first female speaker.
She has held several senior roles in government and the ruling party, including governor of Western Equatoria State from 2011 to 2015, one of the first female governors after independence.
She also served as minister of housing and physical planning from 2010 to 2013, minister of electricity and dams from 2013 to 2015, and minister of wildlife conservation and tourism from 2015 to 2019. In 2015, she briefly held the position of minister of gender, child and social welfare, and also served as acting secretary-general of the SPLM.
Earlier in her career, Nunu worked with the Office of the First Lady, supporting programmes focused on women and community welfare.