Wednesday, 8 April 2026 | Author – Alex Onyango | Nairobi-Kenya | File Photo | GT-News |
Nairobi, April 8, 2026 (The Golden Times) — South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir has dismissed the speaker of parliament, Jemma Nunu Kumba, and appointed lawmaker Joseph Ngere Paciko in her place, following a no-confidence vote by the ruling party’s caucus.
Kumba, a senior figure in the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) and a close ally of Kiir, had led the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) since August 2021. She was ousted after SPLM lawmakers accused her of poor management and corruption during a caucus meeting last week.
A presidential decree announcing her removal and Ngere’s appointment was read in parliament on Tuesday by SPLM Chief Whip Tulio Odongi Ayahu.
Ngere represents Mundri West in Western Equatoria State, in line with a 2018 peace deal provision requiring the speaker to come from the Equatoria region.
In a parallel move, Kiir also dismissed Second Deputy Speaker Parmena Awerial Aluong and replaced her with Abuk Payiti Ayik, a legislator from Upper Nile State. Ayik has previously chaired several parliamentary committees, including those on gender, health and social welfare, and is known for her advocacy on women’s rights.
Both appointments are expected to be endorsed by parliament later Tuesday.
The reshuffle comes as the SPLM moves to tighten its grip on the legislature, where it holds a commanding majority of 332 seats out of 550 under the power-sharing arrangement established by the 2018 Revitalized Peace Agreement.
The TNLA is the lower chamber of South Sudan’s bicameral parliament, alongside the Council of States. It has three deputy speakers representing different parties in line with the peace deal.
Kumba’s removal marks a rare high-level shake-up within the ruling party’s leadership in parliament and underscores growing internal pressures within the SPLM.
