Implementation of the South Sudan peace agreement is behind schedule and the partners are blaming the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development for not adhering to the timetable.

Top government officials blame Igad for failing to take the first step in the implementation process, which is to form the National Constitutional Amendment Committee (NCAC) within 21 days to incorporate the agreement into the Constitution.

In an exclusive interview with The EastAfrican, the Minister for Information Michael Makui, who is also the spokesman and deputy chief negotiator for the government, blamed Igad for not only delaying the constitution of the NCAC since the peace deal was signed, but also delaying a strategic workshop on security arrangements. 

“We are almost half way into the 90-day pre-transition period and yet nothing has been done up to now. As a government, we have no role in this aspect since Igad has been put at the heart of implementation,” said Mr Makuei.

According to the implementation timetable, the Transitional Government of National Unity should be in place by November 26.

Sources in Igad said the delay was due to lack of consensus on who was most suited to head the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC), which will be responsible for monitoring and overseeing the implementation of the agreement.

On October 20, Igad appointed former president of Botswana Festus Mogae as the JMEC chairperson.

The only provision in the implementation timetable that has been adhered to is the withdrawal of Ugandan troops from Bor in Jonglei State.

Insecurity

Juba remains tense even after the signing of the peace agreement. Even with the lifting of the curfew, most residents are home by 9pm because of insecurity as youths rob motorists at night.

There are growing concerns over whether the agreement will really hold, given that the Sudanese People’s Liberation Movement secretary-general Pagan Amum and his former detainee colleagues have not returned to Juba since he signed the agreement on August 17.

President Salva Kiir has since dissolved the SPLM Secretariat, thereby sacking Mr Amum, who had been reinstated only three months ago. 

Two months down the line, citizens are yet to see results of the peace agreement, as partners to the agreement continue to violate the ceasefire especially in Upper Nile and Unity States.

Mr Makuei conceded that no impact of the peace agreement has been felt in the three war hit states of Upper Nile, Unity and Jonglei.

“How do you talk about enjoying peace when the agreement is still just on paper? There is also a split in the rebellion, which is affecting implementation because we don’t know who is attacking our positions in various areas,” he said.

According to Igad chief mediator Seyoum Mesfin, the continued violations of the ceasefire is casting doubts on the parties’ seriousness and commitment to end the crisis through peaceful means.

The two partners are currently locked in negotiations over security arrangements in Addis Ababa until October 26. The have to work on the creation of a shared unified command and unification of their forces, besides also working to establish ceasefire co-ordination mechanisms.