Sudan PM resigns amid mass anti-military protests

Khartoum, Jan 3 (EFE).- Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok stepped down more than two months after a military coup that subsequently reinstated him on Nov.21 after he signed a controversial pact with the army.

In a televised speech on Sunday night, Hamdok said he was resigning to pave the way for a smooth transition towards a democratic state.

“I have tried my best to stop the country from sliding toward disaster,” he said.

He warned that the country “is crossing a dangerous turning point that threatens its whole survival even as he had done everything to reach a consensus that did not happen because of the fragmented political forces and conflicts between the military and civilian.

“I decided to give back the responsibility and announce my resignation as prime minister, and give a chance to another man or woman of this noble country to… help it pass through what’s left of the transitional period to a civilian democratic country,” he added.

Hamdok was appointed prime minister in August 2019 to lead the transition process agreed between the military and political and civilian forces after the ouster of dictator Omar al Bashir in April that year.

However, the military, led by General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, dissolved Hamdok’s government on Oct.25 last year and detained several of its members and other civilian officials.

The prime minister was under house arrest for several weeks before the military reinstated him on Nov.21 under a deal, calling called for a Hamdok-led technocrat cabinet but under military oversight and elections in July 2023.

He was yet to form the new cabinet, pushing the country into a political deadlock.

Hamdok’s resignation came hours after a day of deadly demonstrations against the coup and his agreement with the military.

At least three protesters lost their lives in the protests, taking the toll to 57 in anti-military demonstrations since the coup, said the pro-democracy Doctors’ Committee.

Media outlets had published news about his imminent resignation in the last two weeks after he was reportedly absent from his office for days.

Pro-democratic groups considered his pact with the military as a betrayal and held demonstrations.

Hamdok defended his agreement with the military as an “attempt to bring the parties to the dialog table for a roadmap toward the rest of the transition period.” EFE

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