JUBA — A founding member of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army-In Opposition (SPLM/A-IO), Tijwog H. Agwet, has resigned from the opposition movement, saying the party has moved away from the principles that originally inspired its creation.
Agwet, who is also the chief executive officer of Radio Jonglei and a founding member of SPLM/A-IO, announced his resignation in a statement dated July 6, 2026. In a letter addressed to SPLM/A-IO Chairman Riek Machar, he said the movement had lost its ideological direction and no longer represented its original commitments to democratic transformation, institutional reform, justice, and accountability.
“The values and principles that motivated my decision to join and help build this movement are no longer reflected in its current direction,” Agwet said in his resignation letter.
The departure comes ahead of South Sudan’s planned general elections in December 2026, a critical milestone under the country’s peace process. The political environment remains tense, with continuing disagreements among key political actors over governance, security arrangements, and the implementation of the revitalized peace agreement.
Machar and several other senior SPLM/A-IO figures are currently facing trial in Juba, adding further uncertainty to the future direction of the opposition movement. No immediate response had been issued by Acting SPLM/A-IO Chairman Nathaniel Oyet or party spokesperson Pal Mai Deng regarding Agwet’s resignation.
The resignation also follows renewed armed confrontations between government forces and SPLA-IO units in parts of the country. Recent clashes in Walgak, Jonglei State, reportedly resulted in the deaths of Akobo County Commissioner James Kueth Makuach and several other officials. In a separate incident, an attack on a South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) position in Papuojo Boma, Tonga Payam, Panyikang County, Upper Nile State, reportedly killed several soldiers.
South Sudan’s political parties are under growing pressure to prepare for the 2026 elections while addressing unresolved issues from the peace agreement, including security reforms, institutional development, and conditions for a credible electoral process.
The SPLM/A-IO was formed in 2013 after a political split within the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) triggered a civil war. The movement later became a key signatory to the 2018 peace agreement that ended much of the conflict.
