South Sudanese President Salva Kiir has promoted his Vice President, Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel, to the rank of full General in the Internal Bureau of the National Security Service (NSS).
Bol was promoted from Lieutenant General to full General in a ceremony presided over by President Kiir at State House, Juba, on Monday.
Kiir, 73, also promoted other senior officials at the ceremony, including National Security Minister Mamur Obote Mete and Presidential Advisor on National Security Affairs Madut Dut Yel, both elevated from Lieutenant General to full General.
This is Bol’s third major elevation in less than a year, fuelling speculation over his growing influence in Juba as he is now considered the presumptive successor of Kiir.
52-year-old Bol was appointed Vice President and head of the government’s economic cluster in February, replacing veteran politician Dr. James Wani Igga.
And in May, he was named First Deputy Chairman of the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) party.
Monday’s move to elevate him to the highest rank in the military is perceived as a move to prepare him to take over when Kiir retires, especially coming at a time when South Sudan has charged First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar with treason.
Last week, Kiir suspended Machar and referred him to a court, accusing him of treason and crimes against humanity linked to last March’s militia attack on a military base in Nasir County, Upper Nile state.
“I wish to extend my deepest gratitude to H.E. the President and the Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces and Organised Forces of the Republic of South Sudan, Salva Kiir Mayardit, for the honour of promoting me to the rank of General in the National Security Service,” Bol wrote on his X account.
In his appreciating message, the Vice President appeared to be hinting at Kiir’s plan and also linked his rise to first lady Mama Mary Ayen Mayardit, and her family, for ‘supporting me and raising me under her wing.’
“Throughout my career, H.E. the President has guided me and challenged me to take on greater responsibilities in my service to the nation, and I remain committed to living up to that trust.”
The United Nations has warned that South Sudan risks sliding back into civil war even as Dr Machar’s SPLM-IO, now led by his deputy Oyet Nathaniel, declared the transitional government collapsed and illegitimate, vowing to push for regime change.
Bol was sanctioned by the United States government in 2017 over corruption allegations based on suspicions that his construction company received preferential treatment in the awarding of government contracts.
The company was sanctioned by the US Treasury Department, but this did not deter Kiir from elevating his key ally.
South Sudan has experienced instability since the 2013 civil war, and there have been concerted efforts by the international community and South Sudan’s neighbours, led by Kenya and Ethiopia, to reconcile the warring parties.
Kenya is not only a neighbour but a key
partner in the peace processes that were birthed in Naivasha in 2005, ending a bloody
two-decade civil war, which paved for the eventual secession of the black South
from the Arab North after the 2011 referendum to usher in independence.
