Presidential decree reshapes Western Bahr el Ghazal leadership
Late Monday, President Salva Kiir used a televised decree to remove Governor Emmanuel Primo Okello and install Gen. Sherif Daniel Sherif in Western Bahr el Ghazal.
Sherif belongs to a SPLM-IO splinter led by Peacebuilding Minister Stephen Par Kuol, distancing the office from First Vice President Riek Machar’s camp.
Power-sharing clauses under scrutiny
The 2018 revitalised deal gives Machar’s movement the right to nominate three state governors, a pillar already weakened by earlier dismissals in Upper Nile and Western Equatoria.
With Okello gone, Machar loyalists control no governorships, prompting critics to argue the agreement is edging toward irrelevance.
SPLM-IO voices frustration
Spokesperson Pal Mai Deng said Kiir’s side ‘consults itself, then asks Par Kuol to sign,’ portraying the latest appointment as unilateral (Radio Tamazuj).
Deng warned that, while SPLM-IO remains committed to the accord, its provisions are ‘severely damaged’ and revival will be difficult without renewed trust.
International concern and political detainees
Riek Machar has been under house arrest since March, accused of stirring violence in Nasir County—charges his allies dismiss as political.
The United Nations and Western diplomats urge de-escalation and the release of detained figures, warning that stalled reforms could reignite nationwide conflict.
What the shake-up means for 2024 road map
Key tasks—integrating forces, drafting a constitution, organising elections—remain unfinished, and the reshuffle adds uncertainty to an already compressed timetable.
Observers note that Kiir still holds the levers to steer the process; whether he chooses broader inclusion may decide the peace deal’s survival.