Sudan’s ruling party slams opposition for resisting participation in government
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September 20, 2011 (KHARTOUM) – A senior official at the ruling
National Congress Party (NCP) today criticized the opposition parties
for resisting participation in the upcoming cabinet which will be the
first after the country’s breakup more than two months a go.
JPEG - 17.4 kb
The political Secretary of the National Congress Party Ibrahim
Ghandour (Al-Jazeera)
South Sudan officially became an independent state last July after its
citizens voted overwhelmingly in favor of secession from the north.
Southerners who were part of the federal government automatically lost
their positions as a result.
The delay in forming a new government since the south’s secession was
attributed to the ongoing negotiations between the NCP and the two
major opposition parties including National Umma Party (NUP) and
Democratic Unionist Party (DUP).
The NUP leader al-Sadiq al-Mahdi and DUP chief Mohamed Osman
al-Mirghani have made it clear that they are not interested in
participating in a government without agreement on a national agenda
that would address the country’s crises.
But several officials within the DUP have given contradictory
statements on their position with regard to partaking in the new
cabinet.
Observers say that despite the NCP achieving a landslide victory in
April 2010 elections, it still feels the need for bolstering its
legitimacy by having opposition parties entering the cabinet. While
the NUP boycotted the elections, the DUP did not but only managed to
win a handful of seats in the national assembly.
The polls were boycotted by most major opposition parties in North
Sudan at the time who claimed fraud and party’s control over the state
gives the NCP an unfair advantage.
Well placed sources told Sudan Tribune that the cabinet formation is
now in the hands of president Omer Hassan al-Bashir, First Vice
President Ali Osman Mohamed Taha and presidential assistant Nafie Ali
Nafie who is currently on a trip to Paris.
The proposed government will be tabled at the NCP leadership bureau
meeting on Wednesday so that it is endorsed and officially announced
no later than Friday, sources added.
But other sources suggest that the announcement may wait a little
longer on the hope that the NUP and DUP may agree to participate at
the 11th hour.
The NCP spokesperson Ibrahim Ghandour warned that his party’s patience
is not open ended noting that talks with these parties lasted for over
a year and a half without any results. He nonetheless said that the
ruling party has not given up completely and will continue dialogue
without compromising the interests of the people.
Ghandour stressed that negotiations are focused on the new
government’s programme and not the numerical allocation of posts. He
denied that any pledges were made to either parties on how much share
they will get in the upcoming cabinet.
The NCP official added that meeting between Bashir and al-Mahdi was
delayed numerous times due to the NUP leader’s frequent travels but
noted that nothing stops them from holding talks anytime in the
future.
(ST)
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