Ateny Wek Ateny, press secretary in the Office of the President at the TNLA on May 14, 2019 | Credit | Joakino Francis/Eye Radio

The Office of the President has rubbished the national dialogue report calling for President Salva Kiir and Dr. Riek Machar to step aside, saying it has no legal basis.

Yesterday, a report shared widely online, believed to be produced by the National Dialogue Steering Committee recommended for President Salva Kiir and Dr. Riek Machar to step down ‘if South Sudan is to have a successful transition.”

Responding to the report, Ateny Wek Ateny – the Press Secretary in the Office of the President said the National Dialogue Steering Committee does not have the right to ask the leaders to step aside.

Ateny told Eye Radio on Friday the national dialogue has no legal basis to ask the two leaders to leave politics.

“National dialogue does not have the mandate to ask President Salva Kiir and Dr. Riek not to continue as leaders in this country,” Ateny said.

According to a copy of the document seen by Eye Radio, the national dialogue steering committee says South Sudanese at the grassroots — it consulted are deeply aware of the leadership failure and the political deadlock which has dogged this country for a long time.

The report says one of the options is to consider the stepping down of the two leaders immediately — if it is acceptable to the people and both leaders.

The second option, it suggests, is for President Kiir and Dr. Riek Machar to continue with the precarious transition as provided for in the revitalized peace agreement and they should agree not to run in the next elections after the transitional period.

On elections, the National Dialogue recommends the non-participation of President Kiir and Dr. Machar.

But Mr. Ateny Wek, the President’s press secretary, says the recommendation is against the revitalized peace agreement.

“The revitalized peace agreement is the supreme law in the country because it mandates that if there are provisions of the constitution that contradict the agreement, then those provisions would be deemed to have been null and void so that the provisions of the agreement prevail. It is the agreement that is the supreme law in the country,” said the President’s press secretary.

“Anything outside the revitalized peace agreement is outside the legal framework in the country, and therefore, it doesn’t have the force of law, so whoever asks President Kiir to step down is out of touch with the reality.”

“The people writing those recommendations are out of touch with the reality of the revitalized peace agreement.”

The national dialogue secretariat, however, said yesterday that the report was disagreed upon by the members because of its tone, and therefore was not submitted to the Office of the President.

President Salva Kiir launched the National Dialogue in 2017 to offer an alternative to resolve the country’s political, social and economic challenges.