Nairobi, July 8, 2015 (SSNA) — The leader of South Sudan’s rebels on Wednesday issued a stern warning to South Sudanese President Salva Kiir, saying, Kiir must either resign by mid-night Wednesday or the rebel forces with help from civilians will remove him from power.
The call comes hours before Kiir’s current presidential term ends today at Mid-night (South Sudan local time).
“The SPLM [In Opposition] would therefore like to categorically declare the government of Salva Kiir, the National Legislature and the State Government and the State Legislative Assemblies as unconstitutional and illegitimate as of midnight of July 8, 2015. The SPLM/SPLA appeals to President Salva Kiir to resign from office and dissolve his entire government,” Dr. Machar told reporters in Nairobi.
Machar, who announced the warning in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, said Kiir is not for peace and that Juba has violated previous peace agreements even before they were signed.
“We don’t feel like we have a peace partner with Salva Kiir,” he said
“Should President Kiir remain adamant and refuse to hand over power back to the people, then the citizens have every right to rise up and overthrow his regime,” Machar warned.
In his speech, Dr. Machar repeatedly warned that if Kiir remains the president, refuses to leave the presidency to give the people of South Sudan a chance to choose their leaders through elections, then the armed opposition will use its military might to topple him, adding that the citizens of the violence-wracked nation are feed-up with kiir’s one-man rule.