{"id":44675,"date":"2026-05-15T14:44:02","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T12:44:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/?p=44675"},"modified":"2026-05-15T14:48:48","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T12:48:48","slug":"armed-forces-behind-splm-io-hinder-its-quest-for-party-registration-as-elections-loom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/15\/armed-forces-behind-splm-io-hinder-its-quest-for-party-registration-as-elections-loom\/","title":{"rendered":"Armed forces behind SPLM-IO hinder its quest for party registration as elections loom"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Yiep Joseph<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The interim chairperson of the Sudan People\u2019s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO), Stephen Par Kuol, has revealed challenges facing the party\u2019s registration process ahead of elections.<\/p>\n

Speaking on the Powerhouse program on SSBC, Par acknowledged that the SPLM-IO, one of the country\u2019s main opposition parties, has not yet been registered with the Political Parties Council.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are not registered yet, but we will be registered,\u201d Par said.<\/p>\n

He explained that the continued existence of the Sudan People\u2019s Liberation Army-in-Opposition (SPLA-IO) has complicated the registration process.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe law is very clear that as long as you have armed forces behind you, you are not eligible for registration,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Par said his leadership is working with other political parties to prepare the country for elections, adding that the SPLM-IO remains ready to participate once registration is completed.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the secretary-general of the Sudan People\u2019s Liberation Movement (SPLM), Akol Paul, said the country is ready to conduct elections and reaffirmed the parties\u2019 commitment to implementing the peace agreement.<\/p>\n

He noted that previous challenges had delayed the electoral process but said political parties are now cooperating to minimise obstacles and ensure elections proceed as scheduled in December.<\/p>\n

Representing the Other Political Parties (OPP), Albino Akol Atak acknowledged that significant challenges still affect the peace agreement.<\/p>\n

However, he stressed that there should be no further extension of the transitional period, urging parties to engage in dialogue and move the country forward toward elections.<\/p>\n

The cabinet recently approved amendments to the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS), a move aimed at adjusting timelines and governance arrangements ahead of the country\u2019s long-delayed elections.<\/p>\n

The changes were later tabled before the transitional national legislative assembly for debate and approval.<\/p>\n

The proposed changes came amid growing political tensions within the unity government, particularly following divisions within the SPLM-IO following the detention of opposition leader Dr Riek Machar.<\/p>\n

Government officials and signatory parties backing the amendments argued that changes to the peace roadmap were necessary to address delays in implementing critical provisions of the agreement, including security arrangements, constitution-making, and electoral preparations.<\/p>\n

However, the tabling of the amendment bill in parliament triggered controversy and sharp divisions among lawmakers.<\/p>\n

Members of parliament aligned to the SPLM-IO faction loyal to Machar boycotted the parliamentary sitting, accusing the government and its allies of attempting to alter the peace agreement without a broad political consensus.<\/p>\n

The MPs argued that proceeding with amendments in the absence of key opposition representatives violated the spirit of inclusivity that underpins the 2018 peace deal.<\/p>\n

Some opposition legislators also claimed the process was being rushed at a time when political tensions and security concerns remained unresolved. They warned that unilateral amendments could undermine trust among the parties and weaken the agreement’s implementation.<\/p>\n

Despite the boycott, pro-government lawmakers and allied parties pushed ahead with parliamentary procedures, insisting that reforms were necessary to maintain the transition and prevent a political vacuum.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Yiep Joseph The interim chairperson of the Sudan People\u2019s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO), Stephen Par Kuol, has revealed challenges facing the party\u2019s registration process ahead of elections. Speaking on the Powerhouse program on SSBC, Par acknowledged that the SPLM-IO, one of the country\u2019s main opposition parties, has not yet been[Read More…]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":44676,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[80,79,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44675","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national","category-news","category-politics"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Stephen-Par-Kuol-interim-chairperson-of-the-SPLM-IO-courtesy-photo.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44675","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44675"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44675\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44679,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44675\/revisions\/44679"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44676"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44675"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44675"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44675"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}