Sudan junta head: ‘Military will quit politics once consensus reached via elections’

The Chairman of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereignty Council and General Commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan, has pledged that the SAF will leave all political frameworks if a national consensus is reached through elections.

In an interview on Sudan’s National TV on Saturday, El Burhan said that he does not want to rule and does not want the army to rule, pointing out that “Sudan since independence has been revolving in a vicious circle of governance between civilians and the army”.

He stated that the Constitutional Document includes major shortcomings, “because it was concluded between two parties, the Military Council and the Forces of Freedom and Change, while the rest of the Sudanese people were isolated from participation, therefore the course had to be corrected, and this is what led to the events that happened on October 25th.

El Burhan stressed that the transitional period can still allow for dialogues between all the political components, and for everyone to reach consensus. He said that he is “not disturbed by the demonstrations that are call for return of the army to the barracks,” stressing that “this will not happen unless an agreement is reached and legitimacy is found through the elections.”

He added: “The ball is in the court of the demonstrators and we are ready for dialogue, and we have negotiations with some groups… We agree with the youth that the military establishment should be outside the government. The resistance committees are the real force that we must talk to.”