The African National Congress in the Eastern Cape on Tuesday formally apologised for the disruption of three Democratic Alliance election meetings in the province last month.
The apology follows incidents in which an ANC sound truck with 15 000 watt speakers was used to blast DA meetings in East London and Port Elizabeth, and ANC supporters gathered in what the DA said was ”a massive show of force and intimidation” at another meeting held in Port Elizabeth.
The Port Elizabeth meetings were part of DA leader Tony Leon’s campaigning in the province.
The DA lodged a complaint with the Eastern Cape IEC, saying the ANC had breached the electoral code of conduct by failing to promote conditions conducive to free and fair elections.
ANC provincial secretary Humphrey Maxegwana initially denied any wrongdoing saying the ANC had been ”attending to its preplanned meetings without any knowledge of DA activities”.
However on Tuesday, faced with a DA threat to take the issue to the Electoral Court as a criminal matter, he sent DA provincial leader Athol Trollip a letter of apology.
”The ANC regrets that the DA experienced electioneering by our party as intimidation in Port Elizabeth and East London and apologise, without prejudice, for any inconvenience.
”We believe that the members involved saw their actions as robust electioneering and did not intend any intimidation.”
He said the ANC had instructed the campaign truck to take special precautions to stay away from events and activities of other parties ”so that future clashes can be avoided”.
Had the ANC been found guilty in the Electoral Court both of its MPs and MPLs involved in the three incidents, of whom there were several, could have been disqualified.
Trollip said he had no doubt that all three incidents were ”purely intimidatory”.
”I believe it was on consideration of the consequences that the ANC grudgingly offered their apology, which we accept in the interests of free and fair elections and also to set an example of tolerance.”
Trollip said that with the exception of these three incidents the election campaign in the Eastern Cape had been free and fair, a sign of the political maturity that the Eastern Cape enjoyed in South Africa’s new democracy. – Sapa