South Sudan’s cabinet has appointed Vice President Rebecca Nyandeng de Mabior to lead the governance cluster as suspended First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar faces a treason trial.
Machar, a key figure in the 2018 peace agreement and chair
of the governance cluster, was placed under house arrest in March 2025. He is
currently undergoing trial in court, which began in September, on charges
including murder, terrorism, treason, and crimes against humanity in connection
with the March 2025 Nasir incident.
The government alleges that Machar’s SPLA-IO forces, allied
with the community militia known as the White Army, caused the deaths of a
general and 257 soldiers and resulted in the loss of weapons valued at 58
million US dollars.
According to the State-run South Sudan Broadcasting
Corporation (SSBC), an extraordinary cabinet meeting chaired by President Salva Kiir
on Tuesday decided that Nyandeng, currently Vice President in charge of Gender
and Youth Cluster, would assume Machar’s governance responsibilities.
“In regard to the governance cluster in the absence of the
First Vice President, the council resolved that the Vice President for Gender
and Youth should chair the governance cluster,” said Dr. Martin Elia Lomuro,
Minister of Cabinet Affairs, as quoted by SSBC.
The cabinet also approved amendments to the peace agreement,
separating constitution-making, census, and housing data from the transitional
constitution.
This change are made to pave the way for elections using the
2011 constitution, pending approval by the peace monitoring body and
parliament.
Other cabinet decisions included establishing a mechanism to
pay salary arrears to civil servants and security forces as well as measures to
protect a World Bank funded health sector project.
Supporters of Machar’s SPLM-IO have expressed concerns about sidelining their leader, warning that it could undermine confidence in the power-sharing agreement.
