South Sudan’s Speaker of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly, Jemma Nunu Kumba, has called an emergency parliamentary sitting for April 8 amid mounting political pressure to remove her from office.
The extraordinary session comes just days after the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) voted to withdraw confidence in her leadership and formally recommended her removal to President Salva Kiir.
Parliamentary spokesperson Oliver Mori Benjamin confirmed the summons, describing the sitting as unprecedented. “We are in the operations room in Parliament, although it is a holiday. All Members of Parliament and ministers are required to attend this sitting without fail. The agenda will be communicated, but as you are aware, there have been political developments,” Benjamin said.
The “political developments” refer to a rapidly escalating internal dispute within the SPLM. A caucus meeting chaired by President Kiir on March 31 resulted in a unanimous vote of no confidence against Kumba. Lawmakers subsequently recommended her immediate removal, with the decision forwarded to Kiir, who also serves as party chairman and holds decisive influence over the final outcome.
Multiple reports indicate the move could trigger a leadership change in Parliament within days, with potential replacements already being discussed within party structures.
A statement from the Speaker’s office, however, pushed back against the process, arguing that she was not given an opportunity to respond to the allegations during the caucus meeting and that no formal debate or vote was conducted in accordance with parliamentary procedures. “The Office of the Speaker has taken note of the concerns raised and stands ready to address these matters through appropriate institutional processes,” the statement said.
The emergency sitting places Kumba in the unusual position of presiding over—or at least convening—a Parliament that could determine her own political fate.
At the centre of the dispute are a series of financial misconduct allegations contained in a petition by a section of SPLM lawmakers. The claims include $2 million linked to regional parliamentary games, $285,000 for a generator, 7.2 billion South Sudanese pounds (about Shs15 billion), and 1.7 billion South Sudanese pounds (about Shs3.5 billion) in operational expenditures.
The petition further alleges that 300 million South Sudanese pounds (about Shs625 million) was paid twice for catering services reportedly valued at only 50 million South Sudanese pounds (about Shs104 million). These allegations have not been independently verified, and Kumba has not publicly addressed them in detail.
However, they have intensified internal dissent within the ruling party and raised broader concerns about governance and accountability in the legislature.
The unfolding situation also reflects deeper fractures within the SPLM as the country approaches planned elections later in 2026, with analysts pointing to a wider realignment of power within the unity government.
Kumba, who became South Sudan’s first female Speaker in 2021, now faces one of the most significant political challenges of her career, with her position increasingly uncertain as party leadership weighs the next steps.
The outcome of the emergency sitting is expected to shape not only the leadership of Parliament but also the balance of power within South Sudan’s fragile political landscape.
