The National Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) is urging businesses and employers to ensure that registered voters can cast their vote on 29 May.
The National Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) is urging businesses and employers to ensure that registered voters can cast their vote on 29 May.
Even though the voting day has been declared a public holiday, retail stores for example will continue to operate, said Nedlac community constituency convenor Thulani Tshefuta, adding that it was important that people working in essential services were given time off to vote.
“We identify those who are in essential services and we say yes, on the day of elections itself they may not be able to vote because they will be working. We can’t vote without the police being there. We can’t vote without health workers being in their workplaces and all of that,” he said. “Hence the encouragement that people must exploit the opportunity of special votes.”
Last Friday, the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) said that because of the high volume of online applications it was extending the online applications for special votes to midnight from 5pm.
Special votes are available — by application — in the form of home visits for registered voters who are infirm or have impaired mobility, and any registered voter who wishes to vote early at their voting station. Both categories of special votes will be on 27 and 28 May.
Nedlac urged employers to provide adequate time off for staff members to go to their voting stations, which could mean running shifts and employees working for only half the day.
Tshefuta said farmworkers would also require their employers to provide them with transport so that they could exercise their right to cast their ballots.
According to the IEC, a total of 27,698,369 South Africans have registered to vote on 29 May. But history has shown that far fewer of the registered number of voters actually participate in the elections.
In 2019, out of nearly 26.8 million South Africans registered to vote, only 17.7 million did so. Five years prior, almost 25.4 million people were registered, but only about 18.7 million showed up at voting stations.
Tshefuta said a high voter turnout enhanced the legitimacy of the government.
“At first level, the legitimacy of the government that we have hinges on what we may call the will of the people, and that will of the people cannot be concluded on a smaller percentage of eligible voters going out to vote,” he said.
“A higher turnout will only mean a higher legitimacy which comes with a higher expression of the will of the people.”