The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) Chairperson, Mosotho Moepya, says he is calling on every patriotic South Africa to engage the Electoral Amendment Bill from a point of understanding what it contains.
Moepya made the opening remark during a virtual briefing to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) Select Committee on Security and Justice.
The IEC is briefing the committee on the formula which will be used for the calculation of seats as proposed in the bill.
The bill seeks to amend the Electoral Act to give independent candidates the constitutional right to participate in the national and provincial elections.
It follows a successful Constitutional Court challenge by the New Nation Movement and other candidates on 11 June 2020.
Moepya says, “We are not only speaking inside this house but to South Africans in general who are interested in this bill and we do think it is important that every patriotic, every peace-loving, every democratic and every South African that wants to promote the democracy that we have and enjoys that democracy, truly engages the bill from a point of view of what it contains and not what we think it is… This is the spirit with which we come to you this morning and are presenting this bill.”
Now that the bill is in the hands of the NCOP, further public participation will be conducted.
Today also marks the closing date for the public to make written submissions on the bill.
Criticism
The passing of the bill came despite calls from a group of civil society organisations criticising it in its current form. They called for electoral reform and urged MPs not to vote on it.
Home Affairs Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi has since said that criticism of the bill stems from a complete misunderstanding of the Constitutional Court judgment.
He said the main purpose of the Amendment Bill was to comply with the court’s directive which related to independent candidates.
Motsoaledi elaborates in the video below:
