Trainees during a visit of AU delegation on Friday, March 26, 2021. The peace soldiers are yet to be graduated | Credit | Lou Nelson/Eye Radio

The army spokesperson has assured the public that the graduation of the necessary unified forces slated to take place early next month will never fail this time round.

About 53,000 peace forces are expected to graduate from the training camps. They include the army, police, and national security, among others.

The graduation has been delayed due to “lack of funds”. But observers call it “lack of political will” given the millions of dollars the government has offered the NTC.

The cadets were drawn from the SSPDF, SPLA-IO, and the Opposition Alliance across the country. They have been at the training camps since 2019.

On Monday, the Joint Defense Board, the body tasked with the responsibility of exercising command and control over the necessary unified forces, said it had resolved to start the screening of forces at the training camps next week.

The board’s decision was reached in a meeting attended by top commands of the various peace parties at the SSPDF headquarters, Bilpam.

According to the security mechanism, three joint screening teams will be formed and dispatched to the three regions of Bahr el Ghazal, Equatoria and Upper Nile to kick-start the exercise.

Their mandate shall be to screen the forces and organize those eligible into a conventional military formation.

Asked when the forces will be graduated, SSPDF spokesperson, Maj.-Gen Lul Ruai said: “Once we are done with the screening, it would be followed by unification.”

“I have repeatedly said this is the last leg of the entire process and I’m saying I’m very sure it will take place by the first week of November.”

Members of the public have often criticized the leaders for the slow implementation of the security arrangements, especially the delays to graduate and deploy the forces.

The citizens say they have been lied to by the leaders on several occasions.

Activists and members of the international community have also been concerned by the delays.

This includes the last lie whereby the chairperson of the National Transitional Committee – Tut Gatluak – said on September 2 that the presidency would announce the date for the graduation of the necessary unified forces the following week.