Opposition Parties Postpone Polls Participation Decision

29 March 2010 - (Khartoum) – The coalition of national opposition parties has decided to delay its final decision on whether to participate in or boycott the April elections.

The decision to postpone the decision was reached after a meeting on Saturday in Khartoum.

The spokesperson for the coalition, Farouk Abu Essa, told SRS from Khartoum on Monday that they will make a decision after the presidency meeting on Tuesday.

[Farouk Abu Essa]: “In our meeting on Saturday, the Vice-President of GOSS, brother Riek Machar, told us that the First Vice-President, Salva Kiir Mayardit, after he read the petition presented by the political parties to NEC, presented a five-page petition as well. It includes information regarding NEC irregularities concerning the election process. He said that Salva, in agreement with the president of the republic, decided to hold a meeting on Tuesday to discuss the political parties’ petition. So after a long discussion, the leaders of the political parties decided not to pre-empt the outcome of the presidency meeting, and to wait for the results of the presidency meeting.”

Essa claimed that the SPLM has joined the opposition political party’s stance to postpone the elections scheduled for April.

[Farouk Abu Essa]: “According to statements made by senior SPLM officials before and after the meeting, we have confirmed that they are in favour of the idea of postponing the elections all over Sudan. This is because the timing is not appropriate, there is a lot of forgery going on and there is lack of credibility.”

However, Salva Kiir told the reporters at Juba airport on Sunday evening that the elections must be held as scheduled.

[Salva Kiir]: “I would like to reiterate my firm stand and that of the SPLM that the elections must be held as scheduled and no circumstances whatsoever shall reverse that situation. The SPLM is ready and we shall take these historic elections very seriously.”

Salva Kiir, the SPLM chairman, was speaking to the media at Juba airport on Sunday.