26 Aug 2019

Prospective parliamentary and council candidates have been advised to compile and submit their campaign expense reports to returning officers after the voting day.

Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) chief elections officer for TSAKALOJWA (Tsabong, Kanye, Lobatse and Jwaneng) region, Ms Patricia Mmoloke said expense reports should cover campaign activities for the period from issuance of the elections writ to voting day.

Ms Mmoloke explained during a consultative meeting recently between the IEC and prospective candidates in Lobatse constituency that sections 80 to 89 of the Electoral Act compelled all candidates to submit the reports within 90 days from the announcement of election results.

“We are making you aware of this requirement because IEC is expected to enforce this law. We don’t want it to appear as if we are punishing anybody when we enforce the law.

All elected representatives who fail to submit their election expense reports would not be allowed to take part in Parliament or council sittings until they submit those reports,” she said.

She said in the event the prescribed 90 days elapsed without the elected representatives submitting their election expense report, the matter would be escalated to the Attorney General.

Ms Mmoloke said the submitted election expense reports would be kept by returning officers for six months. She said everybody wishing to view or make copies of those expense reports would be allowed.

The chief elections officer explained that it was being done to ensure adherence to the law, stipulating that all candidates should not spend more than P50 000 in their campaign. 

She pointed out that candidates exceeding P50 000 election expenses would constitute illegal practice under the Electoral Act.

“We want to ensure transparency so that if complaints arise that a particular candidate used more than P50 000 on the campaign the returning officer would be in possession of the right information relating to the expenses of that candidate,” she said. One prospective council candidate, however, said it would have been fair if the law prescribed that reports reflected all expenses incurred in all campaign activities, not just after the issuance of the writ of elections. 

He said some politicians had already spent large sums of money in the period before issuance of the writ of elections.

Prospective candidates were also warned by the IEC about participating in illegal or corrupt practices during campaign or on voting day.

Ms Mmoloke described corrupt practices as using force or violence to compel a person to vote or refrain from voting, and paying a person to influence them to either vote or not vote.

“It also includes bribery which is paying a person or offering a gift, or making a promise in order for them to convince another person to or not to vote at an election.

Penalties for corrupt practices are a fine not exceeding P400 or imprisonment term not exceeding six months or both,” she said. Ends