News Analysis: Gap still exists on Sudan's gov't formation

Despite the appointment of the Sudanese prime minister, it is viewed that great discrepancies endure between ruling National Congress Party (NCP) and political parties and forces regarding formation of the new government.

Sudan has reinstated the post of prime minister for the first time in about 28 years, as First Vice-President Bakri Hassan Saleh took oath on Thursday, which earned full consensus of the political forces which participated in the national dialogue conference which concluded its sessions in October last year.

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir said that Saleh is in charge of the file of reformation of government institutions, as he spoke at a press conference the same day.

However, al-Bashir acknowledged that there were difficulties ahead considering the formation of the new government.

"We have not fixed a time ceiling for the announcement of the government. It is difficult to form a government under presence of more than 90 parties and more than 40 armed movements that participated in the national dialogue," he noted.

Al-Bashir further noted that any political party or armed movement that participated in the national dialogue will be included in the government, whether at the executive or legislative levels, or in the central or state government.

Meanwhile, secretary-general of the opposition Popular Congress Party (PCP), Ibrahim al-Sanousi, for his part, backed Saleh's appointment as prime minister, saying the appointment of a prime minister a first step toward the implementation of the national dialogue outcomes.

The PCP, which was established by the late Sudanese political and religious leader Hassan al-Turabi, is the biggest political party that participated in the national dialogue conference.

Nevertheless, the consensus which characterized the appointment of the new prime minister seems missing on the forthcoming formation of the government.

To this end, Sudanese political analyst Abdul-Rahim Al-Sunni said that "the matter was easy regarding the appointment of the prime minister because there was a belief that the post is a right of the ruling party according to its electoral majority in 2015."

"However, there are differences with regard to the formation of the government, where there are political forces objecting on the participation shares and see that the ruling party is keeping a mechanical majority to help it pass its policies," he noted.

In January 2014, al-Bashir declared an initiative calling on the opposition parties and the armed groups to join a national dialogue to end the country's crises.

The sessions of the dialogue kicked off in October 2015 in a bid to resolve the country's political and social issues.

The conference was launched with the participation of a number of Sudanese political parties, civil society organizations and some Darfur armed groups.

The dialogue's final national document covers principles of rule, public freedoms, identity, peace, unity, economy and external relations. It will be the base for the country's permanent constitution.

Major political parties and armed movements refused to participate in the conference, including the Revolutionary Front Alliance, which brings together the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM)/northern sector and major Darfur armed movements. Endit