The Kenyan-mediated Tumaini Initiative for South Sudan resumed on Monday in Nairobi. However, fresh concerns emerged as the government delegation questioned the opposition’s decision to form new alliance -The United People’s Alliance (UPA).
Former members of the South Sudan Opposition Movement Alliance (SSOMA), participating in the Kenyan-hosted Tumaini Initiative, announced the formation of the United People’s Alliance (UPA) on January 9, 2025, with 37 registered members.
Following the first session of the resumed talks on Monday, Elia Lomoro, Minister of Cabinet Affairs and spokesperson for the government delegation, stated that he would present the government’s position on the matter during the peace discussions.
“This afternoon we had a second session where now we were united in mediation, the government delegation and the opposition. In that session we are now confirmed that finally the government will be presenting its position, which position was denied for a long period of time,” Elia said.
Elia stated that the government delegation is questioning whether they are still negotiating with the opposition and other groups or with the new United People’s Alliance.
“To us [government], this is a political military organization. And that took us the whole of today because we want to be sure that we are negotiating with the same people or different people, because the protocols that were developed were developed based on opposition and other groups,” he added.
The government delegation spokesperson said they are waiting for the government of Kenya to react to the formation of what he called a military organization.
“We still hold our concerns regarding the establishment of the UPA—we have made it very clear to the mediation that we are expecting Kenya to respond, to react to this issue, particularly that our president had raised this concern as well to President Ruto when he sent his message on two important things,” Elia raised the concern.
When asked if the formation of the UPA poses a threat to ongoing peace talks, Ambassador Mohamed Ali Guyo, the deputy mediator to the Tumaini peace, said, “The opposition communicated officially to the mediation about the formation of the United People Alliance. In our estimation, it will not have an impact on the mediation process. As far as the opposition is concerned, this was done for administrative purposes, for coordination, and for seamless communication within the group.”
Ambassador Guyo says the mediation has no issue with internal reorganization of the parties into their different formations.
He appeals to the United People Alliance and government delegates to be peaceful and focused on the peace process.
“We have made it clear to everyone to ensure that peace is maintained, stability is maintained, and that we ensure that as mediation, that is adhered to in our rules of engagement,” Guyo said.
The Secretary General of the opposition’s United People Alliance, Lual Dau, said they are optimistic about the peace talk.
“We are approaching this peace with an open heart, with an open mind, because this peace is about our people. We really want to make sure that this Tumaini Initiative will be a rescue plan that will help our people to make sure that there is stability in the country,” Lual stated.
He said the opposition is approaching this round of talks with an open heart and focus to ensure that there is peace that will make South Sudanese proud.
