By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema has criticised the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) for their appeal on the Electoral Court’s ruling on former President Jacob Zuma candidancy.
Zuma, who is the face of the MK party’s election campaign, was disqualified due to his previous conviction in 2021, in which he was sentenced to more than 12 months’ imprisonment for failing to appear before the State Capture Commission.
The Electoral Court rejected the IEC’s decision to object Zuma to being on the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party candidate list for the National Assembly.
Speaking in Sandton on Friday morning, Malema said the IEC’s decision could lead to questions about the election body’s integrity.
“It’s really very, very personal, and by doing that, they are keeping President Zuma in the news. By doing that, they are making President Zuma gather rallies outside every court appearance – so the court appearances are organised by the IEC.
“We might be thinking that the IEC is acting against Zuma only to find that (IEC Commissioner Glen) Mashinini is behind the strategy of the IEC to keep Zuma in the news. So, you must not sleep.
“I mean, for the first time, we saw Advocate (Tembeka) Ngcukaitobi struggling, and then he came to the JSC there. I went to him, and I was like, ‘I was here busy interviewing judges, but the social media observers are not giving it to you this time. He said to me openly that, ‘this one we have lost’ because he knows that there is no case.
“If they know there is no case, What is going to happen? Why are they doing what they are doing? And some silly mistakes that are being committed by the IEC. Remember that we have 110% confidence in the IEC, but they are making so many stupid mistakes in a year when the election is highly contested.
“When they are supposed to be perfect, we are going now for 30 years of democracy they have got the necessary experience.”
Despite having 110% confidence in the IEC, Malema stressed that the commission was making what he described as “stupid” mistakes on certain issues.
Meanwhile the commission said the move to approach the Constitutional Court to appeal against an earlier order of the Electoral Court, is not an attack against the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party or the former president, IEC chair Mosotho Moepya said.
Should the IEC not have approached the apex court it would run the risk of objections to the outcomes of the May 29 polls, particularly whether the elections were conducted in a free and fair manner, Moepya said.