By A Correspondent- Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok has been reinstated after he signed a deal with Sudan’s top general Abdel Fattah al-Burhan on Sunday.
The signing of the deal restores the transition to civilian rule nearly a month after a military coup.
The 14-point deal, signed in the presidential palace in Khartoum, also provides for the release of all political prisoners detained during the coup.
The deal also stipulates that a 2019 constitutional declaration be the basis for a political transition, according to details read out on state TV. Hamdok said:
I should begin by saying that our country is guarded and preserved by God Almighty and whatever we reach at dead end, my fellow Sudanese people are capable of restoring our country back on course.
When I then accepted the designation as an interim prime minister, I realised that the road was not strewn with roses, it would be a daunting task, fraught with risks and dangers.
However, by joining hands, we can all prevent our country from plunging into the unknown.
We should all come together to let the people decide who will take and hold the reigns of power.
Signing this framework political agreement will open doors to address all the pending issues of the transitional period over the past two years and under this partnership, we have managed to achieve a lot.
We have brought Sudan back into the international community, lifted its name from the terrorist blacklist and many other achievements.
However, we still have many challenges lying ahead.
In his remarks after Hamdok’s reinstatement, al-Burhan pledged to work towards the preservation of the transitional period. He said:
We will continue to work towards preserving the transitional period until all your dreams of democracy, peace and justice are achieved.
Over the past five or six days, a group among ourselves has been making maximum efforts.
All the credit goes to them for reaching this agreement and we believe this will pave the way for a total and complete transitional period.
Meanwhile, the Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC) civilian coalition, which had been sharing power with the military, said it did not recognise any agreement with the armed forces.
The Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA) on Sunday also rejected the political deal.
Sudanese people have been taking to the streets in large numbers since the military takeover late last month, which upended the country’s fragile transition to democracy.
The agreement comes just days after doctors said at least 15 people were killed by live fire during anti-coup demonstrations.
Hamdok was held under house arrest by military leaders for weeks.