Sudan’s 1st VP: NCP’s institutions will decide on Al-Bashir succession
March 27, 2013 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan’s First Vice President, Ali Osman Mohamed Taha, said that the final decision on President Omer Hassan Al-Bashir’s political future will be determined by the institutions of the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) and the Sudanese people. Sudanese Vice President Ali Osman Taha gestures as he speaks during a press conference in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on March 26, 2013 (ASHRAF SHAZLY/AFP/Getty Images) Last week Bashir reiterated his past intentions to step down at the end of his term in 2015 saying that Sudan is in need of “fresh blood”. Taha, who was speaking at a press conference in the General Secretariat of the cabinet on Tuesday, said that "President Al-Bashir who I knew is sincere in his words" adding that this issue should be tackled objectively and away from emotions. "This desire [to step down] was caused by his awareness on the weight of responsibility and was not an authority issue to boast about," the 1st VP said. Taha then discussed his recent meeting with Deputy Secretary General of the People’s Congress Party (PCP) Ali al-Hag saying that it came at the latter’s request, pointing out that the talks touched on the national issues as well as challenges and threats facing the country. Taha who was on a private visit to Germany earlier this month, met Ali al-Hag in Berlin for the first time in more than a decade. He disclosed that he indicated to Al-Hag his willingness to overcome the bitterness of the past and move towards building an inclusive national dialogue which involves all political components in the country. The meeting, according to Taha, stressed the need to renounce violence and adopt dialogue as the only means for addressing all national problems and issues. Minni Minnawi, head of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM-MM), had dismissed the meeting saying that Al-Hag is speaking for himself only and does not represent Darfur rebel groups. He stressed that Darfur conflict is more complex than being resolved through bargains or reconciliation or burying the past. Taha also called on leaders of the Sudan people Liberation Movement North (SPLM-N) Malik Agar and Abdulaziz al-Hilu fighting Khartoum to take part in drafting the new constitution. "I invite all political and opposition forces and Malik Agar and Abdulaziz al-Hilu to join in preparing the new constitution," the Sudanese official said. "There is no way to continue with partial solutions, and Agar and al-Hilu have a right like any other Sudanese citizen to participate in preparing the new constitution" he added. He said dialogue with the rebels, who are known as the SPLM-North, would aim at completing "popular consultations," a process supposed to define the relationship between people in the South Kordofan and Blue Nile border states and Khartoum. Popular consultations were provided as part of the 2005 peace deal with the South, but they were halted when fighting broke out in the two states in 2011. Taha’s remarks signal a shift in Khartoum’s tone with regards to the SPLM-N rebels. The SPLM-N fought alongside the South during its protracted civil war with the north, with conflict flaring in 2011 between Khartoum and rebels fighting for the removal of the Arab-dominated regime. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution issued in May 2012 ordered Sudan and the SPLM-N to cooperate in order to end the conflict in the two regions. Sudan has been strongly resisting regional and international pressure to negotiate with SPLM-N rebels, calling its leaders outlaws and issuing arrest warrants for them. But this month Sudanese officials expressed readiness to sit down with SPLM-N on the basis of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). On Darfur the 1st VP said that they are reviewing the performance of Darfur governors in light of security breakdown lately and make changes accordingly. Darfur has been a flashpoint for lawlessness and violence since rebel movements took up arms against the Khartoum government in 2003. The United Nations estimates as many as 300,000 people have been killed and almost 3 million people have been displaced during the ongoing conflict in the region, however, the Sudanese government put the number of dead at only 10,000. While violence is down from its peak in 2003 and 2004, new fighting has forced more than 130,000 people to flee their homes since the start of the year, according to the United Nations. Taha welcomed the implementation matrix signed earlier this month between Sudan and South Sudan, congratulating President Salva Kiir for the strong support he rendered to implementing the cooperation agreements. He said a meeting will take place in the coming days between Bashir and Kiir to protect the matrix from any potential setback. CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC Taha said that Sudan is closely watching what is happening in the Central African Republic because of its impact on the country’s national security and the security of the region, disclosing that they are consulting with neighboring countries to promote stability in that African country. Taha blamed the western countries for legitimizing dismantling of sovereign African states, reminding the international community of its silence over preventing Southern Sudan’s secession. Rebels in Central African Republic seized the riverside capital Bangui over the weekend forcing President Francois Bozize to flee. The ousting of President Bozize and the political turmoil around it has raised fears of a humanitarian crisis in the former French colony amid reports of looting and breakdown of law and order. 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