By Kitab Unango
South Sudan’s Minister of Peace-building, Stephen Pal said Thursday that division among parties to the 2018 revitalized peace agreement at the states- level is disrupting smooth implementation of the deal.
Under the peace agreement, all parties are supposed to work in unison under collegial responsibility.
“In the government of national unity, we must work together and not like political parties. I am aware that at state level people are still working parallel as SPLM-IG and SPLM-IO. We will fail or success together,” Pal said in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.
He said these remarks during the closing session of a two- day youth orientation workshop.
“We are government of Peace-building. We are not elected government and if we fail to implement the peace agreement, the people of South Sudan will hold us to account,” Pal said.
The United Nations Populations Fund (UNFPA) recently launched $3 million Youth Fund to encourage youth and women participation in the ongoing peace process.
Pal said that the transitional period ends in less than two years period, adding that over 50 percent of the key provisions of the agreement remain pending.
The key pending items include the enactment of permanent constitution and completion of the security arrangement, and also enactment of electoral laws and institutions.
“Something must change in this country. Leadership is the responsibility to serve not a responsibility to just rule for the sake of ruling. It is the responsibility of every person in the government to bring peace to the people of South Sudan,” Pal said.
