Gen. Futuyo appointed SPLA-IO spokesperson amid rising security tensions

YAMBIO – The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) has appointed former Western Equatoria State Governor Lt. Gen. Alfred Futuyo Karaba as the new spokesperson of its military wing, the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO), amid heightened political and security tensions across South Sudan.

The appointment, which was confirmed in an official letter signed on Wednesday by Oyet Nathaniel Pierino, the Acting Chairman and Commander-in-Chief of the SPLM-IO and former First Deputy Speaker of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly, comes less than five months after Futuyo was appointed as the SPLA-IO Acting Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations in October 2025.

In the letter, Oyet said the decision was taken in accordance with the SPLM-IO Constitution of 2015 and resolutions of the movement’s national conferences held in 2014, 2016, and 2020.

Oyet noted that the appointment falls under his constitutional authority and forms part of broader organizational arrangements within the movement. Copies of the letter were circulated to senior SPLM-IO leadership, including Dr. Riek Machar Teny-Dhurgon, the party leader and South Sudan’s First Vice President, underscoring the formal recognition of the decision at the highest levels of the organization.

The decision will see Lt. Gen. Futuyo replace Col. Lam Paul Gabriel, who has served as the public voice of the SPLA-IO in recent years. As spokesperson, Futuyo will be responsible for articulating the movement’s political and military positions, issuing official statements, and engaging with national and international media on behalf of the opposition’s armed wing.

Futuyo is a prominent military and political figure within the SPLM-IO. He previously served as Governor of Western Equatoria State until his removal by President Salva Kiir in February 2025, alongside then-Minister of Health Yolanda Awel Deng. Their dismissal followed political disagreements and administrative changes linked to the implementation of the national peace agreement within the transitional government.

Despite his removal from the governorship, Futuyo remained active in SPLM-IO leadership circles. His new appointment marks his return to a central role within the opposition movement at a time when relations between government and opposition forces have broken down.