Sudan’s Government of National Accord ‘below expectations’

Political analysts and journalists have described the new Sudanese Government of National Accord announced on Thursday as “below expectations, disappointing, and shocking”.

Journalist and political analyst Feisal Mohamed Saleh told Radio Dabanga that the structure of the new government has been tried and tested before.

“Everything indicates that the new government has the same old political mentality as before. There will be no change at all,” he said.

Saleh noted however that the new government has the opportunity to prove that the lack of optimism among most of the Sudanese has no real basis.

Few changes

On Thursday evening, Sudan’s First Vice-President and Prime Minister, Lt. Gen. Bakri Hassan Saleh, announced the formation of the new Government of National Accord, based on the outcomes of the National Dialogue in October last year.

The new coalition government includes 31 Ministers and 44 secretaries of state, but shows but a few changes with the old government. A presidential decree appointed Dr Hamid Mannan as Minister of Interior, Dr Mohamed El Rikabi as Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, and Abdelrahman Osman as Minister of Petroleum and Gas.

President Omar Al Bashir also appointed 65 members of parliament representing the political groups that participated in the National Dialogue. They will as well work on the text of the new Constitution according to the recommendations of the National Dialogue committees.

'Reward'

Journalist and columnist Shamayel El Nur wondered about the programme of the previous government, before comparing it with the programme of the new government. “The new government clearly has no programme. It has only been formed as a reward for the dialogue partners.

“When Bakri Hassan Saleh assumed the post of first vice-president, he promised to reform the civil service and fight against corruption. One wonders what happened since.”

Omar El Digeir, head of the Sudanese Congress Party described the new government as a continuation of the National Congress Party's dominance. “Nothing other than failure is expected of the old new regime.”

The political secretary of the Reform Now Movement, Fathelrahman El Fadil said that the new government will be “a flaccid government, formed with no other reason than to please its members, which makes it the worst government in the history of the Salvation regime”.