SSPDF and SPLA-IO meet to address insecurity
South Sudan People’s Defence Force (SSPDF) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-In Opposition (SPLM-IO) in Eastern Equatoria State (EES) met on Friday to discuss how to curb the insecurity in the state.
Aliandro Lotok, the Press Secretary in the office of EES Governor, Louis Lobong, said the county leadership was treating as a priority the rampant security situation in Torit town and the entire state.
Lobong passed a message of peace to both the SSPDF and SPLA-IO to make Eastern Equatoria State a better and more peaceful state so that people can go freely to their farms without fear of an attack.
“We want to build Eastern Equatoria and make it an exemplary state that will attract people to come and live here because of the reigning peace,” he said.
Gen. Patrick Ohitii was very particular on his side that, he was going to cooperate with the SSPDF and all other organised forces to work together and build harmony, trust, and confidence among the forces.
He also said they are going to engage the civilian population in Eastern Equatoria State. According to Ohiti, the objective of such an engagement is to prove to the civilian population that the forces mean well for them. Apart from that, such a forum would give the civilians a chance to raise some issues they might have with the forces.
However, Aliandro Lotok acknowledged the need to call on the stakeholders to work together and share information among themselves to provide security.
“These forces can join hands and address some of the security threats in the state by both the leadership of division seven and SPLA IO leadership at the Irube cantonment site.” I was able to express the SSPDF’s readiness to maintain peace and to cooperate with their brothers in the SPLA IO section and to make sure tranquility and total peace prevail”
Lotok also said Patrick was ready to join hands in bringing peace to grant citizens free movement anywhere and provide a conducive environment for the interaction of the political parties in the state.
Lotok believes that the meeting will bring peace as the two parties agreed and seem to be the first of its kind since the division by the parties.
Governor Lobong encouraged the two generals to sensitise their forces to work for promotion of security and peaceful coexistence of the state community.
He says that the messages were both received very well by the leadership of both SSPDF division seven and SPLA-IO leadership at Irube cantonment site.
“The honorable governor Louis Lobong Lojore has called the leadership of SSPDF that of SPLA IO based at Irube cantonment site of course this meeting was to allow the forces to interact on the issues that are very important in the state particularly the security.’’
