SPLM State Congress Formations Kick Off All Over the Sudan

By James Gatdet Dak

April 30, 2008 (BENTIU) – The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) State Congress formations began yesterday throughout the ten states of Southern Sudan.

Riek Machar Participants are drawn from all Payams of each state to form the party’s state congresses and elect their respective leaderships.

Speaking to the press yesterday in Bentiu town, the capital of Unity state, the Vice President of the Government of Southern Sudan and Deputy Chairman of the SPLM, Dr. Riek Machar Teny, urged all the SPLM members who are constitutional post holders in Southern Sudan to actively participate in the SPLM Congress formations in the ten states.

Dr. Machar said the current exercise of the SPLM State Congress formations is the first of its kind in the Movement and the beginning of the real democratic transformation of the SPLM into a political party.

He added that the exercise will strengthen democratic institutionalization of the Party structures.

Unity state kicked off its SPLM Congress formation on Tuesday, April 29, at Rubkona County, the SPLM state headquarters, in which the current state Governor Brig. Taban Deng Gai will contest for the Party’s state chairmanship in the election against his challenger, Dr. Joseph Minytuil Wiejang, the current Minister of Health in the Government of Southern Sudan.

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