01 Sep 2019

 Prospective parliamentary and council candidates have been urged to familiarise themselves with the constitution and the Electoral Act in preparation for the 2019 general elections.

Speaking on August 29  during a one-day workshop in Good Hope, Independent Electoral Commission chief elections officer, Ms Patricia Mmoloke said it was imperative for them to understand the requirements.

Ms Mmoloke said they needed to understand the legal provisions on candidate nomination processes and procedures. 

She said they should take note that a candidate was nominated by a proposer, seconder and seven supporters, all of whom must be registered for elections in the area in which the candidate sought election. She also said they should know that a person could only be nominated in one constituency or polling district, and also that failure to produce a national identity card would result in  the nomination paper being rejected.

On another note, Ms Mmoloke said candidates were required to provide a report of their election expenses after the issuance of a writ. She said if successful candidates did not submit their returns, they would be guilty of illegal practice and wouldl not be allowed to sit or vote in Parliament or council.

On other issues, Ms Mmoloke said some of the IEC achievements included successfully delivering elections from 1997 to date. 

She also said they had established conflict resolution structures, which was the party liaison committees in polling districts and trained officers on sign language.

IEC principal elections officer, Ms Kahundu Mutakela told candidates that acts such as canvassing for votes and persuading voters not to vote for any particular candidate should not be committed on polling day. 

She said being in possession of any offensive weapon or exhibiting or wearing any symbol, badge or party colour was prohibited. 

Ms Mutakela said during elections no candidate should convene or attend any public meeting, saying penalties for such acts included fines and imprisonment.

Prospective candidates thanked the IEC for the education and advised that in future they should train officers on other specialised skills such as braille and also to tighten security for officers in rural areas who camped during election day.

Deputy district commissioner, Ms Angelinah Leano thanked all the prospective candidates and advised them to conduct themselves well during campaigns. 

She urged them to respect each other’s party and continue with the spirit of Botho and wished them well in the upcoming general elections.  ENDS