Tijwog Agwet, a senior founding member of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army-In Opposition (SPLM/A-IO), has resigned from the main opposition party.

He accused the movement of abandoning the democratic reform agenda on which it was originally established.

Agwet’s exit comes at a time of deep internal divisions within the SPLM-IO, triggered by the detention of its leader and First Vice President, Riek Machar, and amid renewed tensions straining the 2018 peace agreement.

The SPLM-IO is a key signatory to the 2018 Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS).

Machar has been detained since March 2025 and is currently on trial before a special court in Juba over allegations linked to fighting in Nasir.

In an interview with Radio Tamazuj on Tuesday, Agwet said he submitted his resignation with immediate effect, concluding that the movement had “steadily eroded” its founding principles.

“I officially resigned from the SPLM led by Salva Kiir on Dec. 30, 2013, believing we were building a better SPLM that stood for democratic transformation, institutional reform, justice, accountability and a better future for South Sudan,” he stated.

Agwet was among the senior figures who helped establish the SPLM-IO in 2014 alongside Riek Machar and other leaders.

He lamented that the movement had drifted away from its ideals and become more like “an ethnic and family property rather than a national movement.”

The former presidential adviser on religious affairs said he does not recognise either of the rival SPLM-IO factions — one led by Peacebuilding Minister Stephen Par Kuol in Juba, and the other by deputy chairperson Oyet Nathaniel Pierino operating from exile.

He criticised the Juba-based faction for turning into what he described as a “one-man party,” and accused the exiled faction of undermining peace by supporting armed resistance while calling for Machar’s release.

Agwet said his decision was not linked to recent violence but stemmed from long-standing concerns about the party’s direction.

He has not yet decided on his next political move and reiterated his support for Machar’s release and full implementation of the 2018 peace agreement.

“My resignation is made in good faith, without bitterness or personal hostility toward any individual,” he added.

“South Sudan deserves leaders and institutions that are visionary, democratic, accountable and responsive to the needs of its citizens.”