IEC says it was not intimidated by ANC over candidate dispute

IEC chairperson Mosotho Moepya says the commission was not intimidated by the ANC and insists its decision to extend the Constitutional Court ruling to 32 other parties was legally justified.

The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) says it was not intimidated by the African National Congress (ANC) during the dispute over its excluded election candidates, insisting that its decision to extend a Constitutional Court ruling to 32 other political parties was based on its mandate to ensure free and fair elections.

IEC chairperson Mosotho Moepya said the commission had acted according to its interpretation of the law and accepted the Constitutional Court’s ruling in favour of the ANC.

The court ruling concerned 181 ANC candidates, 130 proportional representation candidates and 51 ward candidates, who had been excluded from contesting the November 4 local government elections.

The IEC subsequently extended the ruling to 32 other political parties it considered to be in a similar position.

“The Electoral Commission has never been intimidated in doing its work, and we will never be intimidated,” Moepya said.

“We have taken an oath of office on the acceptance that we will do our work without fear, without favour and without prejudice. We stand by that. And we will never move away from that.”

Moepya said the Constitutional Court had dealt with the case brought before it by the ANC, but the IEC also had to consider the implications for other parties in similar circumstances.

“What was before the Constitutional Court was the case brought by the ANC. The Court was clear, at least in the hearing, we don't have the prison judgement. We have the order,” he said.

He said excluding parties in a similar position could raise questions about whether the election was being administered fairly.

“We know that if we include, or we understand rather, that if we exclude all other parties in a similar position as the ANC, even handedness in this election becomes an issue that arises,” Moepya said.

The commission had sought legal advice on the matter, he confirmed, adding that it had decided to proceed based on its own interpretation of its mandate.

“Yes, we have sought to clarify that with our legal advices. But advice is what you get and you can either accept or reject,” he said.

ANC Youth League president Collen Malatji criticised the IEC’s handling of the dispute, saying the commission should not act like a political party and should uphold its independence. His remarks came amid tensions over the exclusion of 181 ANC candidates, after the Constitutional Court ruled in the party’s favour.