The Democratic Alliance (DA) on Friday laid a theft charge against the New National Party (NNP) over what it said were several hundred stolen election poster boards.
It said the NNP has been plastering pictures of its leader, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, over those of Tony Leon, and putting them up in two Stellenbosch wards where a municipal by-election will be held on June 18.
However the NNP said the boards were its property, and that the DA was merely panicking as the poll — caused by the resignation of two DA councillors — drew closer.
Stellenbosch police confirmed that DA Western Cape by-lection coordinator Robin Carlisle laid the charge, and that the matter was handed over to detectives.
Carlisle said virtually every poster being used by the NNP in the wards was on Masonite backing belonging to the DA.
He said 15 000 to 20 000 of the 160 000 boards the DA used province-wide in the 2000 local polls never made their way back to the party, and that many of the individuals who had been responsible for the posters at ward committee level had since defected to the NNP.
”We’ve never given them permission to use them, we never sold them. It’s a scandalous affair,” he said.
The DA would also institute civil proceedings on Monday if the boards were not returned, cleaned of NNP material.
The NNP MPL for Stellenbosch, Andre Gaum, said however that the claims were merely an attempt to hide the DA’s ”racist” campaign in the area, and its lie that the NNP was synonymous with the African National Congress.
”Mr Carlisle can forget about getting his hands on boards that belong to the NNP and have been bought with NNP money,” he said.
”Rather than misleading the voters, the DA should run an honest campaign in Stellenbosch.” ‒ Sapa