By Lee-Yandra Paulsen

My Vote Counts has vowed to challenge the Political Party Funding Act in the Western Cape High Court as they are demanding for some of the sections within the Act to be amended. My Vote Counts is dissatisfied with the rule that political parties only identify funders if they donate R100,000 or more and they also want the maximum amount that can be donated, to be reduced.

Policy Analyst, Human Rights Activist and Researcher at Election Monitoring Network at the University of Cape Town, Nkosikhulule Nyembezi spoke to VOC’s Drive Time on Wednesday,17 May about the matter.

Nyembezi said that the Political Party Funding Act, will be holding political parties accountable especially on the issue of funding towards election campaigns and other political activities. The public will now see the gaps and where the country is lagging behind and hold these entities accountable.

According to the IEC’s website, the Political Party Funding Act establishes a tight regulation for private political party funding. This involves limiting the source, size, and usage of political party donations. “This act has allowed the public to know how much political parties get sponsored and that there are different categories,” said Nyembezi.

The public is now exposed to the amounts of money political parties receive from the IEC and private donors. According to Nyembezi, people are now getting to know the amounts of money parties receive for posters and T-shirts for election campaigns, which was not available before.

“We are now getting into the intricacies of rands and cents and with this vigilance we are able to hold parties accountable in terms of what type of agreements and promises are in exchange of getting the money and how far does it advance or take our democracy backwards,” he commented.

Nyembezi said that the decision by My Vote Counts to take this to court is a good thing, as the act will now be discussed in a public arena. This case is good for the country’s democracy. According to Nyembezi, political parties will voluntarily declare the amounts being donated to them, after which the IEC will share it with the public. This will enable voters to make more informed decisions, when deciding who to vote for.

VOC News

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