APA-Juba (South Sudan) As last weekend’s abortive coup rumours began swirling in Juba, the government in South Sudan went into overdrive to demonstrate that it was still in charge of the country.
Beginning with a rash of dismissals of members of the security forces, President Salva Kiir took direct control of the purges, firing the head of the police as investigations got underway over alleged attempts to overthrow his government.
Mr Kiir in power since South Sudan broke away from the rest of Sudan and proclaimed independence in July 2011, was away attending a Saudi-Africa summit in Riyadh when the purported coup attempt to remove him was alleged to have happened.
Speaking to the African Press Agency, sources put the number of arrested security officers at 27 and suggested that more could be detained as the investigation widens.
The rumour of a coup in South Sudan comes amid a number of recent military interventions in west and central Africa where civilian presidents have been removed from power.
President Kiir 72, presides over a precarious peace in South Sudan since the world’s newest nation descended into conflict in December 2013 in which tens of thousands were killed and over two million displaced in and out of the country.
The country of approximately 11 million people hold election in 2024, a first since it gained independence.