Government has appealed to the public to remain calm as the counting and verification of votes by the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) in the National and Provincial Elections is underway.
‘Citizens are encouraged to remain calm as this process unfolds. Vote counting is a rigorous process with various checks and balances by the IEC,’ Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) Acting Director-General (ADG), Nomonde Mnukwa, said on Thursday.
She said the length of the process depends on a range of factors including the number of votes cast and number of political parties contesting the ballot.
‘The IEC is being transparent in the manner in which the results are being captured and verified to ensure the integrity of the electoral processes is not compromised. The results are also audited by independent auditors and then released on the results system for political parties, observers and the media.
‘Parties themselves can verify the captured results against their copy of the original re
sults slip to ensure accuracy. Objections can be directed to the Electoral Commission in terms of Section 55 of Electoral Act and decisions of commission can be appealed at the Electoral Court,’ the ADG said.
By law, the election results must be declared within seven days after an election. The official election results will be announced by the IEC and this period ends on 5 June 2024.
‘Government reminds South Africans that the IEC is the only institution legally mandated to announce the election results. No other institution, analyst, political party or commentator has the legal directive to communicate the final outcome.
‘We call on all stakeholders to exercise caution in prematurely proclaiming the results. The IEC declaration of results is a statutorily requirement that formally ends the election. The process will then shift to the National Assembly,’ Mnukwa said.
Following the declaration of election results, members for the National Assembly are designated by the Electoral Commission, and the lists
are handed by the commission to the Chief Justice of the Republic of South Africa, who then hands them over to Parliament through the Secretary of Parliament.
‘Before Members of the National Assembly perform their functions in the Assembly, they must swear or affirm faithfulness to the Republic and obedience to the Constitution, in accordance with Schedule 2 to the Constitution.
‘The President of the Republic is the last to be elected by the House because the Assembly must be duly constituted first in order to exercise its power to elect the President. The Chief Justice also presides over the election of the President,’ the ADG said.
The election of the President, who is chosen among the Members of the Assembly, is conducted by the Chief Justice of the Republic.
‘Our role as active citizens does not end with voting; we are called to work together to move our nation forward. As a young democracy we have come a long way in our 30 years of freedom and democracy, and government remains committed to working to
gether with all citizens to build a better tomorrow for all,’ she said.
Mnukwa said South Africa’s seventh democratic general elections are an affirmation of the maturity and strength of the country’s democracy.
‘It signifies the vibrant commitment of the people to advancing our freedom and democracy. The citizens have honoured their civic responsibility to make their voices heard by freely voting for the party or candidate that best represents their interests and aspirations for our country,’ the ADG said.
Source: South African Government News Agency