The ruling party also voted against allowing South Africans who will not be in the province where they are registered to vote on Election Day, to cast a provincial ballot.
The DA’s Shadow Deputy Minister of Home Affairs, Masizole Mnqasela (pictured), said in a statement time is running out before next year’s elections. “We will now continue to fight this matter in court.”
Earlier this month, the DA together with nine other applicants, approached the Western Cape High Court requesting an urgent ruling forcing the Department of Home Affairs to ensure that every South African citizen’s right to vote is realised.
The DA says they are confident of a ruling in their favour.
The reality is that the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) requires an urgent decision to allow it to make the necessary arrangements ahead of election 2014.
“The DA believes that all South Africans should be allowed to vote equally, regardless of where they reside. We believe that South Africans living abroad should be able to cast a vote for the Provincial legislature of the province where they were last ordinarily resident in South Africa,” says Mnqasela.
“We further believe that South Africans within our borders should not be denied the right to vote on the provincial ballot of the province where they are registered, regardless of whether they are in that province on Election Day or not.
“We believe that the Electoral Amendment Bill may be unconstitutional as it stands since it limits citizens’ right to vote in certain instances.
“We will continue our fight in court to ensure that there are no constitutional flaws with South Africa’s electoral laws by the time we head to the polls next year.”
