Motsoaledi must account for failing to establish the Electoral Reform Panel
19 October 2023
The DA will call on Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, to account for failing to establish the Electoral Reform Panel as required by the law.
In terms of the Electoral Amendment Act 1 of 2023 the Electoral Reform Consultation Panel must be established within 4 months of commencement of the Act, in consultation with the Electoral Commission and after approval by the National Assembly. The Act commenced 19 June 2023 and the deadline is therefore 19 October 2023.
As the deadline passes there is no indication that the Electoral Commission has been consulted and no names have been tabled with the Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs for consideration despite the call for nominations being published as far back as 19 May 2023.
The DA raised the alarm bell on 19 September 2023, indicating the urgency of the matter to Minister Motsoaledi after he had advised the committee on Home Affairs that the Electoral Reform Advisory Committee may be finalised in November.
This is the latest in a series of stalling tactics on Electoral Reform by the ANC government. From the Electoral Amendment Bill to the consequential amendments on the Bill and now the Electoral Reform Panel, Minister Motsoaledi has delayed electoral reform every step of the way. The Minister was advised as far back as February of the urgency of consequential amendments and has since assured the committee on Home Affairs that his department would produce relevant legislative amendments as a matter of urgency.
It is clear from the public participation on the Electoral Amendment Bill that South Africans wants a more accountable government. South Africans want public representatives that care for them and fight for them. As part of Electoral Amendment Bill deliberations the DA pushed for a sunset clause to allow for a full electoral reform process, and establishing an Electoral Reform Panel to drive this process was agreed as a compromise.
It is clear that the ANC does not want an accountable government at all. To quote Kgalema Motlante, the ANC “has no appetite for a (electoral) system that creates accountability.” A 2013 bill by the DA’s James Selfe all called for such a system to strengthen accountability and improve Parliament's ability to exercise its oversight mandate. The ANC rejected the bill.
The failure by Minister Motsoaledi to establish the Electoral Reform Consultation Panel in the time frame prescribed by law has a direct impact on its effectiveness. In terms of the law the deadline for the Panel to complete its report is 12 months after the 2024 election and so every day its appointment is delayed is a day less to consider electoral reform options, consult with stakeholders and undertake meaningful public participation.
We need an accountable government. The DA will call the Minister to account to Parliament on this blatant disregard for the rule of law and the will of the people of South Africa.
Issued by Adrian Roos, DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Home Affairs, 19 October 2023
