‘Tribalism a challenge for Sudan army’: military chief

Sudan’s military Chief of Staff is concerned about the spread of tribal disputes, the reluctance of the youth for military recruitment, and the low efficiency of the armed forces. “The army might turn into state pockets and lose nationalism, as has happened to the police.”

Major-General Imad Adawi, Chief of Staff of the Joint Operations, expressed his concerns during a workshop at the headquarters of the Military Academy in Omdurman on Sunday.

Adawi said that the experience of the federal governance has empowered the security apparatus in the states of Sudan and made it the supreme authority, according to the National Security Act.

Constitutional amendments in January this year stipulate that the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) will become a full part of Sudan’s regular forces, instead of being a state institution tasked with collecting and analysing information and data.

The undersecretary of the Federal Governance Bureau remarked that tribalism and regionalism have “greatly impacted the work of the armed forces because of the penetration of tribalism within the armed forces.

“The power of the tribe has become far greater than some might imagine, as some of the decisions have been issued to satisfy certain tribal orientations,” the official said in Omdurman.