By Yiep Joseph
Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity (R-TGoNU) has reaffirmed its commitment to 2018 peace agreement, assuring the public that the regime will not lead the country back to war.
Michael Makuei Lueth, Minister of Information, Communication Technology, and Postal Services, who also serves as the government spokesperson, made this statement during a media briefing on Wednesday.
Makuei’s statement came in response to reports of the arrest of members of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army-in-Opposition (SPLM/A-IO) in Juba, which raised concerns among the public.
Following the arrests, SPLM/A-IO spokesperson Pal Mai Deng, who is also the National Minister of Water and Irrigation, called for their release and reiterated the party’s commitment to peace.
In his address to journalists, Makuei reiterated President Salva Kiir’s commitment to ensuring that the country does not return to war.
He acknowledged that the recent arrests and ongoing conflicts in some areas present challenges to the peace agreement, but he expressed confidence that the issues can be resolved.
“All these activities seem to be taking people back to war, we are not taking people back to war that is why we are talking, if we are taking people back to war we could have work in silence,” Makuei said.
“Our president (Salva Kiir) has committed himself several times once and every time that he will not take you back to war, so we are not taking anybody to war,” he added.
“All that is happening these are normal ups and downs in the implementation of any agreement so people should not just be frightened that the agreement is collapsing,” he expressed.
Makuei urged the public to remain calm, assuring them that the government is fully in control of the current challenges facing the peace agreement.
“My message to the public is that the government is in full control of the situation and we are in the process of addressing it,” he said. “Some of these issues do strengthen the agreement because from here we will be moving steadily there will be no more obstructions.”
He called upon the SPLM/A-IO to respect the resolutions from the recent presidency meeting aimed at de-escalating ongoing conflicts in certain areas of the country.
“The R-TGoNU calls upon our partner member, the SPLM/A-IO, to control and restrain its forces and abide by the resolutions made on March 3, 2025,” he stated.
Makuei also warned social media users to stop spreading unverified information and hate speech, which can incite fear among the public.
“We are supposed to use our social media for peace and harmony for social coexistence not to agitate war and encourage lawlessness and disorder social media users are advised to abide and respect the use of social media responsibly otherwise at the end of the day you find yourself in conflict with the law,” he said
He appealed to the public to remain calm and not be swayed by online misinformation.
“My advice to the public is to ignore the negative propaganda circulating on social media. These wild rumors can be dangerous when people read them and react impulsively,” he cautioned.
On the nation’s 10th Independence Day, President Salva Kiir vowed to prevent the country from slipping back into war, urging unity and solidarity among the people.
“I want to assure you that I will not return you back to war. Let’s work together to recover from this past decade and put the country back on the path to development in this new decade,” Salva Kiir said.
He called for renewed spirit as the country implements the revitalized peace agreement signed in 2018.
Kiir said committed efforts were being made to improve South Sudan’s security situation, adding that some 53,000 thousand personnel are ready to be inducted in the security forces.
Recently, the civil society organization Center for Peace and Advocacy (CPA) called for the release of Lieutenant General Gabriel Duop Lam, Chief of Staff of the SPLA-IO.
In another statement, Edmund Yakani, the Executive Director of the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), urged leaders to resolve their differences amicably.