By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The judgement has been reserved in the case involving Lobby Group My Vote Counts, who wants the Western Cape High Court to re-instate two key limits in the Political Party Funding Act that have been removed since the Electoral Matters Amendment Act came into effect.
On 10 May 2024, My Vote Counts launched the main application, where, due to the lacuna in the Political Party Funding Act 6 of 2018, the applicant sought an order granted ex parte that the upper limit be determined at R15 million per annum, and the disclosure threshold be deemed to be determined at R100 000 per annum.
The organisation wants the previous status quo, which set an annual limit of R15 million on donations, and all amounts over R100,000 had to be declared, reinstated.
In May, the Western Cape High Court found prima facie, or on the face of it, that My Vote Counts had established its case.
In its ruling, it emphasised that “secrecy enables corruption” and that this was why “information on private funding must be compulsorily ‘held’.”
It was a partial legal victory for My Vote Counts, the civil society organisation advocating for transparency about money in politics, and also a crucial step in reinstating clarity and transparency in South Africa’s political donation regimen.
“At the moment, I can give a party R100 million. There’s no legal obligation for the party or the donor to make this public,” said Joel Bregman, Senior Researcher at My Vote Counts.
The Act came into effect after it was signed into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa in May this year. Before it came into effect, the Political Party Funding Act had a disclosure threshold for funding political parties.
The Act was meant to effect various consequential amendments needed to bring independent candidates into the fold, but in addition to the political funding disclosure changes also altered the funding formula for political parties represented in legislatures.
“There was a very real reason why these came into being in the first place when the Party Funding Act came into being in 2021 it was to enhance accountability, transparency to clamp down on corruption on the free flow of private interests in our politics so without those we have been in a party funding free for all and we need to close this lacuna because we don’t want private interests to be buying up our politics, added Bregman.”
Earlier in May when the IEC announced that R172-million in political donations had been declared for the period of 1 January to 31 March, My Vote Counts said in a statement that this might be the last fully public disclosure, given the lack of limits and thresholds.
“This funding free-for-all may further entrench private interests who now can donate any amount they desire, all out of the public eye. Compliance to and strengthening of the PPFA will bring us closer to a democracy where our politics is transparent and open, public representatives are accountable to the people and money is not used to influence decisions that should be made for the public good,” the organisation said.
Presidency together with the Speaker of the National Assembly Thoko Didiza, the Ministers of Home Affairs Dr Leon Shreiber and the Minister of Justice Thembi Simelane are cited as respondents. They have all indicated that they will abide by the court’s decision.