DA to challenge IEC’s candidate registration reopening
The Democratic Alliance (DA) will oppose the reopening of the registration process for candidates for the municipal elections.
IEC chairperson Glen Mashinini on Monday announced the commission would be setting a new deadline for political parties to submit candidate nomination lists.
It follows the Constitutional Court's dismissal of its application to postpone the polls to next year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The IEC's decision will be a lifeline for the African National Congress (ANC), which had failed to register scores of candidates in various municipalities after missing the initial deadline two weeks ago.
But the DA says it's a transparent strategy for the ANC and gives it an advantage that other parties have never enjoyed.
DA federal council chairperson Helen Zille says the party has briefed its lawyers to explore all available avenues to oppose the decision.
"The DA will not hesitate to fight the IEC and the ANC in their blatant attempts to manipulate our Constitution and our electoral processes.
"What we saw today gives the ANC an advantage that other parties have never enjoyed. It is a transparent strategy to benefit the ANC, and would go some way to explaining why the ANC withdrew its appeal to the Electoral Court to have the candidate registration deadline lifted.
"Why would they have done that if they did not have a fallback position. Now their ‘Plan B’ has been revealed.”
