SA’s chief electoral officer Sy Mamabolo has flagged attempts to muddy the outcome of the general election today, saying they are “orchestrated”.
Mamabolo told reporters on Tuesday night: “In this election there is clear orchestration to undermine the credibility of the outcome. The videos you saw over the weekend are not an accident — but [part] of a clear, orchestrated endeavour to say this election could not have been free and fair, even before they happen.
“As a commission we want to be resolute, to protect the integrity of this election because the SA people have invested in their democracy. And they have entrusted that responsibility on our shoulders.”
He gave examples of attempts to discredit the outcome of the elections, and said: “Authorised vehicles of the commission carrying important merchandise of the commission are being followed into storage sites. People gain unlawful entry into the storage sites.
“Material of the commission which has been delivered at the voting stations is being interfered with after gaining unlawful entry into a voting station. But not only that. [People] then take videos and place them in the public domain. That is what I am talking about.”
Mamabolo also said that two people were arrested for suspected interference with the electoral materials and processes, while two other cases were under investigation by the police.
He said that the commission welcomed and encouraged vigilance by contestants and observers in the electoral process. However, such vigilance should be exercised within the confines of the law.
This year’s election has attracted unprecedented voter interest, with 27.79-million voters registering to vote. Of these, 42% are between the ages of 18 and 34 — compared with 22% a decade ago. The Electoral Commission of SA (IEC) is expecting a high turnout — likely above the 66% recorded in 2019 — with 70 parties contesting seats in the National Assembly.
The IEC has confirmed that it had processed 937,000 out of the 1.7-million registered voters during the two days of special voting.
“This figure was much higher than was the case in the previous election and augurs well for an improved voter turnout tomorrow [Wednesday],” said Mamabolo.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has deployed 2,828 members of the SA National Defence Force to help police maintain law and order across the country. The deployment, which is authorised until June 7, will be at a cost of R59,451,704.
“The election is a point in history. It’s a pivotal election, a crucial election where the outcome depends on the verdict of the voters, and this is one of the potential turning points, where the system could move in a different direction,” said Wits University political analyst Susan Booysen.
“It seems almost inevitable at this stage that the ANC will slip below 50%, and that is such a crucial moment. For 30 years we have literally seen one party dominance within a multiparty system.”
Booysen said voters were faced with a “very difficult task” of choosing who to vote for.
“There are so many difficult choices that are facing SA’s electorate in this election. But the ball is really in their court whether 1-million or 20-million voters go and vote, they will be constituting SA’s government,” said Booysen.
She said the ANC was uncertain of itself in this election. “They truly do not know where they will be after the election. They’ve also seen the polls, they had their own poll, none of those look really pretty,” she said.
This has forced the party to look everywhere for “every little bit of help” they can get — including the use of state resources. “You can just look at advertisements and how close ANC election advertisements have been to those that have been issued by ... multiple government departments.
“I think there is a lot of privilege — maybe it’s equivalent to abuse — [the] privileged use of state resources in a way the ANC has been fighting these elections in coalition with the state,” she said.
Meanwhile, the DA and the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party have filed cases at the Electoral Court over Ramaphosa’s broadcast address to the country on Sunday. The parties claim the president’s address 48 hours before the election was in breach of the electoral code of conduct which prohibits political parties from campaigning two days before the election date.
In court papers, the DA said it wanted the ANC to be fined for the address. “It is, of course, impossible to determine with any degree of certainty how many votes the ANC may have gained as a result of Mr Ramaphosa’s abuse of power,” said DA federal chair Helen Zille.
“The DA submits that a reduction of 1% of the total votes the ANC received would be a fair reduction.”
The MK party has asked the court to cancel the ANC’s registration as a political party and to initiate criminal proceedings against Ramaphosa.
“It is our contention that Ramaphosa has knowingly misused his presidential office to deploy state resources in a manner that benefits his corrupt and desperate political party, the ANC,” the party said in a statement.
Additional reporting by Kabelo Khumalo
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.