At the launch of the national and provincial elections, on October 9, the chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), Adv Pansy Tlakula, said: “The scenes from those first elections are forever inscribed in the national memory.
“For the first time, South Africans from all walks of life stood in line, waiting to participate as equals in determining a government for the country.
“On that occasion, we honoured the words in the preamble to our Constitution: ‘We, the people of South Africa… believe that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, united in our diversity’.”
He added that there would be no better way to celebrate this milestone – 20 years of democracy – than to ensure that every eligible South African is able to register and to vote in these coming elections.
He explained that our democracy will be strengthened by the patriotic involvement of all our citizens. The IEC is, therefore, determined to ensure that they attain a record number of registrations for these elections.
Tlakula said the IEC is also preparing for an exceptionally high voter turnout, noting that South Africans have repeatedly shown that they will rise to the occasion, and the IEC is confident that the opportunity of the coming elections will be no different.
“In South Africa, our legislative framework requires citizens to register before they are allowed to vote; it is important to note that registration is apolitical.
“Everyone has a role to play in encouraging unregistered citizens to register,” added Tlakula.
He stressed that the call by the IEC to encourage voter registration is one that must be embraced by political parties, the media, educational institutions, organised labour, organised business, religious institutions, faith-based organisations, traditional leaders, government, chapter nine institutions and civil society as a whole.
“The Electoral Commission is a continuously-learning organisation that operates in a maturing democracy,” he said.
“Operating, as it does, in a fairly young democracy, we have learnt and continue to learn from our counterparts in other parts of the world.
“We also, however, tap into the wealth of knowledge that exists within the borders of our own country. “In preparation for the 2014 national and provincial elections, the commission considered a number of areas to improve the management of elections.
“This led to consultative processes, with various stakeholders, including observers, civil society organisations and political parties.
“One of the outcomes of these consultations is the proposed legislative amendments currently before Parliament.
“If passed, the Electoral Amendment Bill will extend voter registration opportunities for South African citizens outside of the Republic.
“This will be another step forward in our evolving democracy, in order to extend the right to vote.”
The dates for a general voter registration weekend are November 9 and 10. All the voting stations in the country will be open for the purposes of voter registration from 8am to 5pm.
“We make a special call on young people, especially those who will be eligible to register and to vote for the first time, to show up in your numbers on the registration weekend,” said Tlakula.
“You are a special generation – the first to have been born in a democratic and free South Africa and who are now able to participate in the democratic life of our nation.”
