SPLM-IO Crisis Deepens: Prof. Adwok Calls Interim Leadership a 'Coup' ‎

 

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Prof. Adwok

‎The internal rift within South Sudan’s main opposition party, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO), has taken a dramatic turn following the appointment of an interim leadership in the absence of detained leader Dr. Riek Machar. 

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‎Prominent South Sudanese intellectual and former minister, Professor Peter Adwok Nyaba, has condemned the move, labeling it a “coup” against the peace agreement.

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‎On April 9, senior SPLM-IO members in Juba installed Peacebuilding Minister Stephen Par Kuol as interim party leader. Losuba Ludoru Wongo was named deputy, and Agok Makur Kur was appointed interim secretary-general. 

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‎The appointments came days after Machar was placed under house arrest on March 26, accused of inciting violence in Nasir County.

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‎Speaking to the media, Prof. Adwok dismissed the leadership changes as illegal and externally orchestrated. 

He warned that the move violated the 2018 Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS), which explicitly names Machar as the First Vice President. “This is not only unconstitutional within the SPLM-IO but also a breach of the peace agreement,” Adwok said.

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‎The formation of the interim team has been largely rejected by senior SPLM-IO officials loyal to Machar, highlighting deepening divisions within the party. 

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‎Prof. Adwok further warned that such internal power struggles risk destabilizing the fragile peace process and could ignite fresh violence, especially in areas like Nasir and Ulang, already experiencing insecurity.

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‎However, Agok Makur Kur, the newly appointed interim secretary-general, defended the leadership shift, denying it was a coup. 

He described it as a temporary arrangement aimed at keeping the party functional during Machar’s detention. “We remain loyal to Dr. Riek Machar and are calling for his immediate release,” Makur stated.

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‎As South Sudan prepares for its first elections since independence, this latest political drama casts further doubt on the country's ability to maintain unity and uphold the peace accord that ended years of civil war.

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