GOOD Media Statement by Brett Herron,
GOOD Secretary-General & Member of Parliament
17 July 2023
New information has come to light pointing to serious corruption in the registration of voters in DA-led George ahead of by-elections scheduled to take place on Wednesday.
After submitting substantive evidence to the IEC on Saturday that DA canvassers had falsely registered voters from Thembalethu as residents of Ward 20, in Borcherds, where a by-elections is due to be held, on Monday GOOD received new evidence of 188 voters all registered on the voter’s roll at the same address in Ward 16, where a second by-election is scheduled.
It is unthinkable that 188 adults could live in the small house, in what a simple scan of Google Maps reveals to be a small single-storey dwelling – and unfathomable that the IEC failed to detect the aberration.
In fact, the property is home to just two people.
This is more than enough evidence to warrant postponing the by-elections until after the voter’s roll has been thoroughly investigated and those responsible for the fraud brought to book.
After the IEC said on Monday that it couldn’t do anything about the evidence of registration fraud in Ward 20, because it was reported too late, the GOOD Party approached the Electoral Court on an urgent basis to remedy the situation.
The list of 188 alleged residents of the one house that came to light today will also be put to the court as further evidence of voter’s roll fraud requiring investigation and explanation.
The IEC’s position that it can’t act on evidence of election fraud, including affidavits by the perpetrators and a list of falsely registered names and addresses, because objections to the voter’s roll should have been lodged by 22 June 2023 in compliance with the by-election timetable, is illogical.
How could GOOD have objected to the voters roll by 22 June if the evidence of voter registration fraud was only disclosed to the party on 14 July 2023?
The electoral commission is effectively saying that as far as it’s concerned voter registration fraud is permissible provided it is kept secret until the objection’s deadline has been reached.
How does that gel with the commission’s primary responsibility to facilitate free and fair elections?
If the by-elections are not postponed, it will enable unqualified voters to elect a ward councillor for a ward they do not, and have never, lived in.
The registration of voters who do not live in the ward is the equivalent of “bussing voters in”. The full scale of the fraud is unknown.
The conduct of registering voters who are not entitled to vote is a breach of the Municipal Electoral Act and is “prohibited conduct”.
Once GOOD had provided substantive evidence of “prohibited conduct” the IEC became duty bound to intervene.
In the absence of the IEC fulfilling this duty voluntarily, the Electoral Court must compel it to do so.
Media Enquiries:
Brett Herron, GOOD Secretary-General & Member of Parliament
Cell: 082 518 3264
Email: bretth@forgood.org.za
Samantha Jackson, GOOD Acting Media Manager
Cell: 083 550 9875
Email: media@forgood.org.za