South Sudanese President Salva Kiir has carried out a sweeping reshuffle of the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), promoting long-time ally and sanctioned figure Benjamin Bol Mel to the party’s second-highest position, as the country grapples with renewed armed clashes and mounting uncertainty over Kiir’s succession.
In a decree broadcast on state television on Tuesday night, Kiir, 73, named Second Vice President Bol Mel as deputy chairperson of the SPLM. The appointment places him directly in line to become acting president if Kiir steps down, fuelling widespread speculation that Bol Mel may be the president’s intended successor.
Bol Mel was sanctioned by the United States in 2017 over allegations that his construction company benefited from preferential government contracts. Despite this, he has remained a central figure in Kiir’s administration and is now positioned at the heart of South Sudan’s power structure.
The political shake-up comes just weeks after the United Nations warned that South Sudan is on the verge of descending back into civil war. Tensions have risen sharply following the house arrest of First Vice President Riek Machar, Kiir’s long-time rival, who was accused of attempting to incite rebellion—a charge his party has strongly denied.
Machar’s detention, his party claims, nullifies the fragile 2018 peace agreement that ended the country’s devastating five-year civil war, which pitted Kiir’s Dinka-dominated forces against Machar’s Nuer fighters.
The recent developments have prompted diplomatic concerns, with countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany either shuttering embassies or scaling back operations in Juba.
In the same decree, Kiir also demoted three senior SPLM figures who had played major roles in South Sudan’s liberation struggle, including former Second Vice President James Wani Igga. The move signals a broader realignment within the ruling party as internal divisions deepen.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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