JUBA, March 22 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan's ruling party, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), has proposed postponing parliamentary elections scheduled for December for another year.
"We propose that we conduct presidential and gubernatorial elections in December 2024, and the parliamentary elections to follow after one year of the elected government," said SPLM Secretary-General Peter Lam Both in a statement issued in the South Sudanese capital of Juba Thursday evening.
He disclosed that the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) is expected in April to approve a budget for election institutions, such as the Political Parties Council (PPC), the National Elections Commission (NEC), and the National Constitutional Review Commission (NCRC).
Lam called for dialogue among the parties to the 2018 revitalized peace agreement over the type of elections that should be conducted, saying South Sudan does not need a permanent constitution to conduct an election, as it currently has the 2011 transitional constitution in place.
"The political parties that are signatories to the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (ARCSS) must now dialogue on whether we will hold general or executive elections, given the budgetary considerations for elections," he said.
The SPLM reiterated its resolve not to extend the transitional period by another year, which ends in February 2025. ■
