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DA welcomes the deregistering of the BLF as a political party

The Democratic Alliance (DA) welcomes the deregistration of the Black Land First (BLF) movement as a political party.

Since its inception the BLF has caused division amongst South Africans as its constitution stated that only black people can be members of their party.

The deregistration of the party comes after it was found that they had contravened Section 16(1) (c) of the Electoral Commission Act which states that the IEC may not register a political party which indicates that persons will not be admitted to membership of the party or welcomed as supporters of the party on the grounds of their race, ethnic origin or colour.

Furthermore, the Electoral Act is clear that incitement to violence and stoking of racial hatred is prohibited.

There is no place in this country for such parties or politicians who gain votes by stoking vicious hatred.

The DA believes that the role of a political party is to foster unity and embrace the diverse cultures that are to be found in South Africa.

South Africa needs public representatives who understand that we are better together.

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DA reports unethical and rude MEC Mazibuko to IEC

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is disturbed by the audio published by the AmaBhungane Centre for Investigative Journalism where the Gauteng MEC for Sports , Arts, Culture and Recreation (SACR), Faith Mazibuko is heard swearing and threatening and racially attacking her staff members, demanding the erection of combi courts.

It’s disturbing that the MEC demands that her staff members deliver combi courts so that she can use them to win votes for the ANC. She further tells her staff members to flaunt rules in order to ensure the delivery of the combi courts that she promised to communities.

This recording clearly shows that this department is failing to adhere to the supply chain management process and that there is no accountability and transparency in tender processes. The goal is to win votes at all costs.

This again shows the ANC’s disregard for the people’s money. The ANC is a criminal syndicate, which uses the people’s money to stay in power, enrich itself and people close to the organization.

We will therefore refer this recording to the IEC for it to investigate the abuse of public money for party political purposes.

MEC Mazibuko lacks the skills and competencies required to lead this department. She is rude to her staff members and there is an element of racial and gender discrimination which goes against government’s policies.

Such treatment of employees goes against the Employment Act.

The Department of SACR under the leadership of MEC Mazibuko has consistently failed to meet its own targets and underspends on its allocated budget.

It is surprising that the department that has failed to deliver libraries and sporting facilities timeously wants to push for the delivery of combi courts to fool voters into voting for the ANC.

This incident indicates how desperate the ANC in Gauteng is to win votes. Gauteng residents are tired of empty promises and the lack of service delivery from the failing ANC government. Gauteng residents are going to punish the ANC at the ballot box on the 8 May 2019 when they vote for Change by voting for the DA.

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DA encouraged by voter turnout during final registration weekend

The Democratic Alliance (DA) is encouraged by the hundreds of thousands of DA supporters that turned out to register and re-register to vote over the weekend. It is most encouraging that the majority of people who came out to exercise their democratic right and duty are young people.

We are particularly pleased that in the three battleground provinces, Gauteng, Northern Cape and the Western Cape, the DA registered and re-registered hundreds of thousands of existing and potential supporters.

This weekend was a true test for the IEC and we have expressed to them that the issues that came up this weekend should be addressed for election day. There was for instance an incident in Limpopo where around 150 people were registered to vote but are all living at the same address as well as some incidents in areas in the Western Cape.

We will continue to liaise with the IEC to ensure that these elections are free, fair and safe.

We will also ensure that there is equitable treatment of all parties by the Office of Electoral Officers; a declaration of non-party affiliation by every presiding officer and access to hourly turnout statistics amongst other things.

We would like to encourage those voters who may not have had a chance to register to vote or re-register to visit their local IEC office before the proclamation of the election date, which is when the voter’s roll will be closed.

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DA welcomes IEC’s ‘Democracy in Schools’ campaign

by Mike Moriarty MPL – DA Principal Representative of the Party Liaison Committee

The DA welcomes the launch of the sixth annual schools’ Democracy Week programme by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) this week.

The theme for this year’s programme is Be the legacy: Strengthen our democracy through voting. The programme will run from 23rd April 2018-27th April 2018, when South Africa celebrates 24 years of democracy.

It is of utmost importance that our children are taught from an early age about the importance of participating in the national, provincial and local government elections.
They will also be empowered on why it is important to register to vote.

In the past years, the youth could be characterised as being apathetic when it came to voting and did not fully understand the importance of participating in this critical democratic process.

According to the IEC, this week will not only be about promoting voter registration but will also promote responsible and active citizenship amongst our youth.

As the DA we believe that voter education and the values of democracy should be instilled in our learners from an early age.

In the run-up to the 2019 elections we call on the IEC to emphasize the fact that a voter’s vote is their secret and they cannot be intimidated into revealing who they voted for.

Total Change can only be brought about if all South Africans are registered to vote and go to the polls in their numbers to exercise their democratic right to vote as enshrined in the Constitution.

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DA welcomes new IEC registration opportunity

24 May 2017

The IEC is now making it easier for existing voters to re-register if they have changed their address.

Last week, the IEC issued an SMS to relevant voters advising them that they could log on to the IEC website to correct their addresses.

This is to comply with the order of the Constitutional Court, which obliges the IEC to ensure that the voters’ roll is correct in all respects, including the voter’s address.

However, the difference between this opportunity and all previous efforts by the IEC, is that a voter can self-correct his/her address information, without having to engage with an IEC official in person.

Up until now, any voter that had moved had to go to an IEC office at a local municipality and advise the official in person.

IEC offices are only open during working hours, and it is not always guaranteed that anyone would be there to assist.

The only other alternative was to wait for a general registration weekend in the run-up to an election.

Recently, the IEC has been using other means to get addresses, with limited success.

This opportunity is not only easy to use, it can enable a voter to be re-registered in a voting station near to where he/she has moved to.

Currently, the IEC’s website only allows you to change address, however, from August, it will be enhanced with an application that links the address to a voting station. At this point, all voters who have moved will be able to change their registration without having to present themselves in person.

While we welcome this development, the DA says that the IEC should explore ways to assist those without access to the internet in equal measure.

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Merafong Ward Committee Elections Halted

Merafong Local Municipality

The Democratic Alliance in Merafong has learnt that all the ward committee elections scheduled for this coming weekend in Merafong will not be taking place.

This was confirmed by the local IEC who informed the DA that the Speaker of the Merafong local municipality had failed to follow the correct procedure in formally approaching the IEC to handle the election of ward committees, and also failed to provide a budget for the IEC to do so.

The Speaker further neglected to inform Council of the cancellation of the ward committee elections.

This is yet another flagrant abdication of the Constitution by the ANC in Merafong.

Mayor must Set a Firm Date for Fresh Elections

Residents are entitled to representation through their duly elected ward committees and to participate in the governance of their communities. This right is being arbitrarily withheld by an uncaring government.

Further investigations have revealed that the office dealing with ward committee matters has been closed for quite some time now, and all attempts to reach officials have been unsuccessful. An oversight visit revealed a nearly empty parking lot at the municipal offices in Halite Street on Wednesday.

The DA will call an urgent meeting with the Executive Mayor to demand an explanation and set a firm date for fresh elections.

 

 

Media Enquiries
 
 
 
Ina Cilliers MPL
DA Constituency Head: Merafong
060 556 4344
 
Warren Gwilt
Economic Cluster Manager
073 601 6144
 
 
 
 

 

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DA to lodge IEC complaint against desperate ANC over stolen and defaced posters

Note the editors: The following remarks were made by DA Mayoral Candidate, Solly Msimanga, outside Brooklyn Police Station in Pretoria. Msimanga was joined by the DA’s IEC Party Liaison Committee Member for Tshwane, Justus de Goede MPL. Pictures of the posters can be found here, here, here, here and here.

I have today commissioned an affidavit that will serve as the basis for a complaint the DA will lodge against the ANC with the IEC for their continued theft and defacing of DA election posters in Tshwane.

This is nothing more than a desperate attempt by the ANC to slow down the DA’s momentum in Tshwane as it becomes increasingly clear that the DA can win.

While DA posters have been illegally removed in Tshwane for some time now, we have recently come across a number of DA posters that have been defaced by the ANC by sticking their own posters over them.

In one example in particular, a poster of the ANC’s imposed Mayoral Candidate, Thoko Didiza, was pasted over a DA “Vote for Change” poster featuring Mmusi Maimane.

The theft and defacing of election posters is a clear violation of sections 91, 92 and 97 of the Electoral Act and must be condemned in the strongest terms.

These actions of the ANC are not those of a party committed to uTata Madiba’s dream of building a free and fair South Africa with opportunities for all.

Instead they are the actions of a party in decline that has allowed progress in the Capital to stall. Since 2011 unemployment has grown out of control, corruption has infected the City, and service delivery has ground to a halt in many communities.

They are the actions of a party that is staring defeat in the face and will go to any lengths to prevent a loss. A party that has thrown R1 billion at their campaign because they can’t run on their record.

The ANC’s actions once again underscore the need to replace their dishonest and uncaring government with an honest and responsive DA government that will bring the change that Tshwane needs to move forward again.

Change that will deliver jobs to the 517,000 residents of this City who are without work.

Change that will stop the corruption that has lost this City R4.481 billion in unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure since 2011.

Change that will deliver quality services and housing opportunities to the thousands of residents of this City who continue to go without.

On August 3 the DA can win Tshwane and bring the change it needs. Together we can turn this City around and turn it into a hub of opportunity where residents can pursue a life of value.
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IEC Instructs Parks Tau To Respond To DA Complaint By COB Today

Abusing City Funds

Lawyers acting for the IEC have instructed incumbent Johannesburg Mayor and ANC Mayoral Candidate, Parks Tau, to respond to the DA’s complaint against him by close of business today.

On 8 July, the DA laid a complaint with the IEC against Parks Tau for abusing City funds to shamelessly advertise himself and the ANC.

The City of Joburg, has tried to rubbish our complaint as falling within its responsibility to, “inform residents of progress towards fulfilling its mandate”, but this is a blatant distortion of the truth and an attempt to misinform the public.

The basis of our complaint is a radio advertisement paid for by the City of Johannesburg, which reads as follows:

“A great city like Joburg deserves great leadership, so it’s good to know that Joburg executive mayor, counsellor Parks Tau, was recently nominated as an African candidate for the United Cities and Local Government co-Presidency and the MEC for Health and Social Development was elected Vice President of the Network for Locally Elected Women of Africa, an Integral part of United Cities and Local Governance Africa. Clearly the city of Joburg is in good hands. Joburg, a world class African city.”

ANC Cronies Waste Tax-payers’ Money

This is clearly an excessive and gratuitous depiction of an office bearer of the City, and clearly creates a perception that the advertisement promotes the Mayor as an individual.

It has absolutely nothing to do with informing Johannesburg residents of any progress made by the City towards fulfilling its mandate.

The DA will not stand by idly while Tau and his ANC cronies waste tax-payers’ money on self-promotion and threaten the fairness of the upcoming elections.

Electoral Code of Conduct

The electoral Code of Conduct states that:

“No person may, abuse a position of power, privilege or influence, including parental, patriarchal, traditional or employment authority to influence the conduct or outcome of an election”.

By spending public money on party political propaganda, Mr Tau is abusing his position in an attempt to influence the outcome of this election.

We eagerly await the response of Parks Tau, who must be held to account for flagrant abuse of City funds and infringement of the electoral Code of Conduct.

Should the IEC fail to take strong action against Tau, the DA will consider its legal options against Mayor Tau, as well as the IEC, in the interest of upholding the Code of Conduct, the Constitution, and South Africa’s hard-won democracy.

Millions of Rand have been spent on newspaper adverts, billboards, and radio adverts over the past four months in an attempt to prop up Tau’s administration.

This excessive and wasteful expenditure comes in the wake of disastrous failures by the ANC-run City to create jobs, stop corruption, and ensure quality service delivery to all.

City of Golden Opportunities

For too long, the ANC has broken its promises and lost the trust of the people of Johannesburg.

I call on the people of Johannesburg to see through the ANC’s blatant lies and punish them on 3 August.

It is time to bring an end to the ANC’s arrogance and their unashamed misuse of your money.

I pledge to never abuse your trust and misuse your money. Under a DA administration the residents and businesses of Johannesburg will be put ahead of self-interest, patronage and corruption.

Together, we can make Johannesburg a city of golden opportunities.

On 3 August, vote for change that will move Johannesburg forward.

 

Media enquiries:

Nkele Molapo

Media Officer

072 041 4842

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DA IEC complaint: City of Joburg’s dirty lies

The DA condemn’s the latest comments by the City of Joburg, alleging that its unashamed ANC electioneering is in fact lawful, and falls with within its responsibility to “inform residents of progress towards fulfilling its mandate.”

This is a blatant distortion of the truth and an attempt to misinform the public of its abuse of taxpayer’s money.

The latest advert aired by the City of Joburg reads as follows:

“A great city like Joburg deserves great leadership, so it’s good to know that Joburg executive mayor, counsellor Parks Tau, was recently nominated as an African candidate for the United Cities and Local Government co-Presidency and the MEC for Health and Social Development was elected Vice President of the Network for Locally Elected Women of Africa, an Integral part of United Cities and Local Governance Africa. Clearly the city of Joburg is in good hands. Joburg, a world class African city.”

One is left asking, how does this qualify as informing residents of progress made by the City towards fulfilling its mandate?

It is clear that the City of Joburg’s administration has been filled by ANC deployees who will do anything to ensure the ANC is kept in power.

As the elections fast approach and the ANC grows more anxious about losing the City of Joburg to the DA, we are seeing deliberate misuse and abuse of taxpayer’s money.

Millions of rands have been spent on newspaper adverts, billboards, and radio adverts over the past three months in an attempt to prop up Tau’s administration. This excessive and wasteful expenditure is in the wake of disastrous failures by the ANC-run City to create jobs, cut corruption, and ensure quality service delivery to all.

It amounts to millions of rands of lost opportunities to create jobs for the City’s 869 000 unemployed people. In fact, unemployment has increased by nearly 4% over Tau’s term in office, with 180 000 people being added to the ranks of the unemployed.

On Friday, 8 July, the DA laid an official complaint with the IEC. The DA called on the CEO of the IEC to:

  • Instruct Mayor Tau and the ANC to stop contravening the Code immediately, specifically by desisting with gratuitous and excessive advertising, using public funds to promote himself and the ANC whom he represents.
  • Approach the Electoral Court if necessary, to enforce the Code against Mayor Tau and the ANC, as they are empowered to do and, I submit, as is their duty under section 77 of the Municipal Electoral Act.

We requested the IEC to respond to our complaint by 12h00 tomorrow, 12 July 2016. We hope that the IEC will use this opportunity to cement its independence and uphold its duty to ensure the elections are both free and fair.

The abuse of authority and public funds by Mayor Tau and the ANC in the City is an unacceptable threat to the fairness of the elections on 3 August.

Should the IEC fail to take strong action against Tau, the DA will consider its legal options against Mayor Tau, as well as the IEC, in the interest of upholding the Code of Conduct, the Constitution, and South Africa’s hard fought democracy.

For too long, the ANC has broken its promises and lost the trust of the people of Johannesburg.

We are confident that the public will see through the City of Joburg’s dirty lies, and will punish Tau at the polls for abusing their money.

 

Herman Mashaba

DA Mayoral Candidate for Johannesburg

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Parks Tau: How do you sleep at night?

Note to editors: The following comments were made by Herman Mashaba following the IEC seminar on free and fair elections and signing of the electoral Code of Conduct held at the Apartheid Museum, Johannesburg, this morning.

Today, as the DA’s mayoral candidate for Johannesburg, I am proud to commit myself to running a fair campaign.

Since we started campaigning on 12 March 2016, we have crisscrossed this great City offering a message of hope for every resident.

We have run a clean and positive campaign, and that is how we intend to continue.

So, when I sign this Code of Conduct, I mean it.

“We the undersigned parties hereby undertake to uphold the electoral code of conduct as described in the Local Government Legislation: Municipal Electoral Act 27 of 2000.”

It is unfortunate that some amongst us signed this Code today, but they don’t really mean it.

When you sign this Code you must commit to it not just in word, but also in deed.

Parks Tau stood up here today and pledged his allegiance to the Code.

At the same time, his administration has spent millions of rands promoting his campaign with billboards and adverts that cast Mr Tau and the ANC in a positive light.

This is an abuse of public money that should be spent on service delivery for the people of Johannesburg.

Mr Tau: How do you sleep at night knowing that money for service delivery is being used for your propaganda?

And how can you sign this Code of Conduct with a straight face?

The Code of Conduct states that:

“no person may) abuse a position of power, privilege or influence, including parental, patriarchal, traditional or employment authority to influence the conduct or outcome of an election”.

By spending public money on party political propaganda, Mr Tau is abusing his position in an attempt to influence the outcome of this election.

This is why we have laid a complaint with the IEC, and we hope that they will treat it with the seriousness it deserves.

In the meantime, we trust that the public will see through Mr Tau’s hypocrisy, and will punish him at the polls for abusing their money.

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