The costs of establishing a Multi-Party Funding Unit within the Independent Elections Committee (IEC) will be unaffordable and exorbitant. The IEC and the Treasury says at least R11 million in initial funding is needed to set-up a fully staffed Unit. Both the IEC and Treasury were briefing Parliament’s Ad Hoc Committee on the funding of political parties, and the financial implications of the Bill that seeks to establish political party funding.
The Bill also seeks to regulate private political party funding however, Treasury has no money to start the process of establishing the Unit that will be responsible to manage this initiative.
Besides the initial R11 million for personnel, more money will still be needed for other operational expenses.
While in principle most political parties are not opposed to the idea, they however expressed reservations about the bearaucratic nature of the proposed structure that will manage their funding.
The IEC wants to convince the private sector to partner with them by contributing to the fund. The objective is to sustain the fund without further burdening taxpayers.
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