The African National Congress (ANC) is expected to head to the Electoral Court in Bloemfontein today to challenge the registration of the uMkhonto weSizwe Party.
The ANC argues that there were procedural flaws in the way the party was registered by the Deputy Chief Electoral Officer Mawethu Mosery.
It contends that the MK party was supposed to launch a fresh application and not supplement its original and initial application which was rejected by Mosery.
Legal Analyst Reitumetsi Phiri says, “One of the reasons that it’s going to be difficult for the ANC is that it didn’t make proper use of the appeal mechanisms and the objection mechanisms in the Electoral Commission Act. It didn’t object to uMkhonto weSizwe Party’s application to be registered as a political party when it had the ability to do so. When it did eventually belatedly object, the objection was actually dismissed as being irregular.”
“It also did not appeal the registration of uMkhonto weSizwe Party timeously when it should have done so and this is particularly problematic because in this way it could be argued that the ANC has actually given up its right to challenge the registration of uMkhonto weSizwe Party as a political party,” adds Phiri.
