“SPLM fought for the independence of South Sudan, and you brought independence, let us maintain peace in the country.”-Kiir

President Salva Kiir of South Sudan has urged members of his governing SPLM party to spread peace across the nation. He made the comments Friday in Juba, while chairing an SPLM gathering.

President Kiir, who also serves as the SPLM’s chairman, stated: “You must be ambassadors of peace, and the SPLM must constantly promote peace.” Because you (SPLM) fought for South Sudan’s independence and won it. As a result, you must preserve the country’s peace.”

Kiir acknowledged that his administration accomplished little in the past decade of independence as a result of what he described as years of needless fighting, vowing not to reintroduce the nation to conflict.

“Let us strengthen the SPLM; in the past decade of our freedom, we accomplished little owing to needless fighting. We fought for freedom, but what are we fighting for now? We gained independence and held positions prior to the 2013 conflict,” Kiir said.

Additionally, the South Sudanese leader encouraged SPLM members to spread the SPLM political philosophy by cooperating with other minor political organisations in the nation.

“As the governing party, you must engage with other minor parties to bring them together for the greater benefit of South Sudan. As a large party, you should cultivate relationships with other opposition parties in order to sell your political philosophy to them,” he said.

President Kiir also cautioned South Sudanese about the growing violence in areas of Western Equatoria state, stating that his administration would not accept more bloodshed.

“As we speak in this chamber, a tragic scenario is unfolding in Western Equatoria. This is the message I constantly convey to South Sudanese: I will not return the nation to war. However, if you assault me repeatedly, I will defend myself. The problem of forgiveness was very serious at the time of Jesus Christ, which is why he was crucified. However, I hope that conflict does not erupt again in South Sudan,” he said.

Members of the SPLM Political Bureau and SPLM caucus attended the SPLM conference.