Plan afoot to remove President Kiir from power, declares former general

South Sudan's President Salva Kiir during the 30th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the Heads of State and the Government of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia January 29, 2018.
Image: REUTERS

A plan is underway to remove South Sudan President Salva Kiir from power if he does not resign this year, the Star can reveal.

In an exclusive interview in Nairobi, a former South Sudan Liberation Army general and ex-political detainee has said they are ready to don their uniforms and force President Kiir from power “soon”.

“We are talking to various SPLA officers from all communities and Salva is going to be shocked very soon," former SPLA chief of staff Gen Oyay Deng Ajak declared. He has served in various dockets. 

The Ajak group — whose members he did not disclose — accuse President Kiir of tribalism, destroying the ruling party SPLM, the SPLA army, the police and running down the country.

"And no peace talks that will work with Salva again. So the only option left to us is to fight him. We are planning, we are organising and we are ready,” Gen Ajak said.

The only option is for Salva to resign, he said.

“If South Sudan is a member of Igad, the EAC and the African Union, the only other solution is for the regional bloc and the international community to pressure Salva to resign.

"He can stay peacefully anywhere in the region, we in South Sudan can forgive him and let him stay in Juba. But the current regime must resign and we will form a government of technocrats to restructure and lead the country for three to four years or whatever to a credible election.

"This cannot happen under Salva,”Ajak said.

In what apparently spells doom for South Sudan’s fragile peace on its 10th Independence Day anniversary this year, Ajak said if that doesn’t work, the only other option is for the South Sudanese to fight and chase him from the presidential palace.

“Otherwise, there will be no election and there will be no peace under Salva. And Salva wants to die in that seat. There is always time for everything but the time will come very soon for Salva to go. Either he goes by resigning, as I said, or we are going to fight him,” Ajak reiterated.

South Sudan Ambassador Chol Ajongo did not respond to a request for comment on the claims. 

Ajak, who served as Minister of Investment and later National Security, was among 11 senior government officials who were accused of plotting a coup against President Kiir on December 15, 2013.

They were arrested and detained for six months until President Uhuru Kenyatta secured their freedom in a deal with his South Sudan counterpart under the auspices of Igad.

The first group of seven was released in January 2014. President Kenyatta identified the seven as Deng Alor Kuol, Geir Chuang, Cirino Hiten, Kosti Manibe, John Luk, Gen Madut Biar Yel and Chol Tong Mayay. 

While South Sudan said the detainees would be held behind bars, Kenya gave them red carpet treatment and provided them with passports. President Kiir opposed the move, saying it was not what they had agreed.

In May 2014, the remaining detainees — former SPLM secretary general Pagan Amum Ajak, former Defence minister Majak D'Agoot and former Ambassador to the US Ezekiel Lol Gatkouth — were also released to President Kenyatta.

He said the release of all the detainees was the first step in the reconciliation process. 

But in a recent interview with Citizen TV, Kiir accused President Kenyatta of withdrawing his promise to keep the political detainees “safely”.

“I am not happy because after the attempted coup of 2013, President Uhuru took the lead that he was coming to take the leaders that I had apprehended during the coup. I told him, 'My brother, I cannot give you these people because they have to answer the charges on the role they played in the coup.'

"But President Uhuru put himself in front of me , [saying] he will not allow them to talk a single political sentence, that he would keep them safe in his house until I am convinced that they did not do anything. And so we released them to you [Kenyatta],” Kiir said.