Opposition leader supports holding election at end of transition

By Awan Achiek

The leader of the opposition National Democratic Movement (NDM) Dr. Lam Akol Ajawin on Tuesday reiterated his support for holding election at the end of the transitional period in December this year.

“The first point to stress is that election is not an isolated item; it is part of the peace agreement requirement. It is the end point of the peace agreement; it is the exile point of the peace agreement that the transitional period can only end in an election,” Akol told journalists after  meeting with Jemma Nunu Kumba the Speaker of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) in Juba.

He said that elections must be conducted to demonstrate the will of the parties to implement the 2018 revitalized peace agreement in letter and spirit.

 “It is not a question of whether we like an election or not, it is a must if we are true to the spirit and letter of the peace agreement,” Akol said.

“As I said the timeline or the activities of the peace agreement are spelled out in terms of the timeframe, but they are connected and must lead to a successful and peaceful way of ending the transition period,” he added.

John Agany Deng, the Chairperson for the TNLA Committee on Information and assembly said that the two leaders discussed a range of issues concerning the peace agreement, the role of parliament in the decision-making process and legislation powers and the role of parliament in pushing for elections.

“He has briefed the Rt. Hon. Speaker on some issues especially the remaining period whether the country is prepared to go for elections, the need to review the remaining items in the peace agreement,” Agany said.