Former Western Equatoria state governor Joseph Bangasi Bakasoro on Friday rejected calls for anti-government demonstrations in the capital Juba.

South Sudanese youth are mobilizing through social media demanding the removal of President Salva Kiir. Several youth in diaspora and in the country have called for anti-government protests in Juba on May 16.

Bakosoro, who leads the opposition group South Sudan National Movement for Change, urged South Sudan youth not to take to the streets in the capital.” I want to say that it is not the right time for our youth to protest. It is not good to copy what happened in Sudan,” he said.

The opposition politician stressed that the country was not ready for popular uprisings. “What we want now is peace. I don’t support any plan for protests because we don’t want war again,” Bakasoro told Radio Tamazuj.

 The former governor has said youth are trying to emulate the protests in neighboring Sudan and blamed South Sudanese in diaspora for trying to instigate youth at home.

“Our problem as South Sudanese is completely different. We want the problem to be resolved but not through protests,” he said.

Bakosoro, who is a signatory of the September peace deal, said:” I call upon those who are behind the planned protests to stop. We are working to implement the peace agreement. You cannot go ahead with protests while people are working on the peace process.”

President Salva Kiir and several opposition leaders, including main opposition leader Riek Machar signed a peace deal in September last year to end the conflict.

The agreement that was extended by once-warring parties last week provides for a new unity government in November 2019 before elections three years later.