What does the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) do when township dwellers refuse to vote in a hostel because of past animosities with its residents? Or when high-profile leaders of a political party are seen registering voters on behalf of the IEC?
These are some of the complex issues the Commission has already had to face as the election race slowly takes off. South Africa’s provincial and national elections are widely expected to take place in April, although President Thabo Mbeki is yet to announce the poll date. But this has not deterred parties from commencing with their electioneering, sometimes characterised by petty politicking.
In Thembisa on the East Rand, members of the United Democratic Movement have already complained that it is unfair that their members should have to vote at a voting station where there is a huge African National Congress billboard.
Although they have not laid an official complaint, the UDM has asked the IEC either to change the venue or to remove the ANC paraphernalia.
Gauteng manager for electoral matters Simon Mamabolo said the IEC’s approach is to consult the parties through their liaison committees. ”Our electoral laws are silent on some of the questions raised with us. So it is important that we sit with the parties and arrive at a solution.
”It will be difficult to solve the issue of residents who feel uncomfortable about voting in a hostel through reference to the laws only. Some ANC people have complained that the results from such a polling station cannot really be free and fair because some of their members would be reluctant to go and vote there. But we are not expecting such inter-party rivalry because there is a great deal of political maturity and mutual respect among the parties,” Mamabolo said.
There were bloody clashes between supporters of the ANC and the Inkatha Freedom Party over political turf in the townships of Gauteng in the early 1990s. Many of the IFP supporters involved in these clashes lived in hostels in Gauteng.
In KwaZulu-Natal, where the ANC and IFP have almost equal numbers of supporters, provincial electoral officer Mawethu Mosery said the IEC had to tread carefully to make sure that all parties are treated equally.
The provincial IEC’s credibility suffered heavily when it was accused of colluding with the ANC to register voters last week. IFP Youth Brigade members questioned how ANC Youth League members allegedly obtained IEC equipment to register voters when they were not employed by the IEC. The IEC promised to investigate.
But Mosery said: ”The specific complaints were not made to generalise about the whole election management in KwaZulu-Natal. Elections are a much-contested terrain and it is difficult to please everyone. But the political parties have a good understanding of the electoral process.
”Already there are complaints about the defacing of billboards and some posters being torn down. After the date is announced and we near elections, then we will start hearing about no-go areas. But we are confident we will resolve those. We meet once a month with political parties and also organise to meet with their provincial executive committees.”
”We are worried that if parties try to fight elections on technicalities it will escalate into an acrimonious battle where political rivals will be watching out for petty things like which poster does not comply with a municipal by-law,” said Western Cape provincial electoral officer Reverend Courtney Sampson.
”Here political parties have been concerned about registration figures such as whether there are more people registered in areas where they are the minority party.
”They are also watching very carefully who is appointed to work on the IEC. That is why we try to avoid hiring people with high political profiles,” said Sampson. He said that later this month all parties were due to sign a pledge to uphold the electoral code of conduct.