Financial Mail and Business Day

DA casts doubt on IEC’s credibility

The legitimacy of the polls may come into question even before a vote is cast on November 1

Thando Maeko Political Writer

The Constitutional Court’s ruling on the reopening of the registration process for potential candidates may not be enough to restore the credibility of the 2021 local elections for some parties.

The main opposition DA reacted by threatening legal action on the outcome of the vote, meaning that the legitimacy of the polls may come into question even before a vote is cast on November 1.

The Electoral Commission of SA (IEC) came under fire for reopening the registration of candidates, giving a lifeline to the ANC, which had failed to register potential councillors in dozens of constituencies in time.

This came after the highest court rejected the electoral body’s bid to have elections postponed on the basis that Covid-19 restrictions would compromise its ability to deliver free and fair elections.

The court on Monday dismissed the opposition party’s application to declare the IEC’s reopening of its candidate nomination process as unlawful.

The judgment paves the way for the ANC, which missed the initial August cutoff date, to meet the IEC’s revised September 21 deadline to submit candidates’ names.

“The clarity provided has laid a solid foundation for the election,” IEC chief electoral officer Sy Mamabolo said. “Such an approach means we have remained able to deliver a free and fair election.”

The top court said the DA failed to persuade it that the extension of the candidate nomination process would be “unconstitutional and unlawful”. The court, however, did not rule out that any party, including the DA, may challenge the outcome of the polls should there be evidence that the IEC’s alleged bias contributed to the elections not being free and fair in some municipalities.

DA leader John Steenhuisen said at a briefing on Monday that the judgment leaves the door open for the DA to challenge the court’s decision “at a later stage should we be able to provide even further evidence of the IEC’s favouring of the ANC”.

Steenhuisen also questioned the IEC’s ability to conduct the polls, saying that the voter registration weekend on September 18 and 19 showed that there are cracks in the electoral body’s

ability to conduct the polls.

During the last municipal elections, held five years ago, the ANC lost ground in terms of general support and control of Johannesburg, Tshwane and Nelson Mandela Bay.

The DA, which is battling to regain ground after a significant loss of votes in 2019 among its traditional voter base, said it would still take part in the November 1 polls — despite its doubts about the credibility of the IEC — because a boycott would “play into the hands of the ANC”.

The IFP said it disagreed with the court’s judgment and will be closely monitoring the freeness and fairness of the elections.

Council for the Advancement of the SA Constitution (Casac) executive secretary Lawson Naidoo said the court was correct in its judgment, because the expansion of the voters roll meant that there were more eligible candidates who may wish to stand.

“The reopening of the candidate nomination process for a limited period affirms the rights of these potentially eligible candidates to exercise their rights,” he said.

The ANC’s Pule Mabe told Business Day that the party is on track to register all its candidates to contest the elections by the IEC’s September 21 deadline following a special national executive committee meeting on Friday. However, Mabe remained mum on whether the cash-strapped party will be able to pay the deposits for candidate registration. In the lead-up to the IEC’s initial candidate registration, the ANC, which has recently been battling to pay employee salaries, failed to pay deposits for a significant number of its candidates.

THE ANC, WHICH HAS RECENTLY BEEN BATTLING TO PAY SALARIES, FAILED TO PAY DEPOSITS FOR A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF ITS CANDIDATES

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2021-09-21T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-09-21T07:00:00.0000000Z

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