INQUIRY:  It confirms leak of party’s candidate slate, blames employee for the incident…

By Lehlohonolo Lehana

Independent Electoral Commission of SA (IEC) deputy chief Masego Shiburi says the leaking of ANC candidates list was from one of its employees.

Shiburi says the matter is regrettable and an internal inquiry has since been instituted.

“The preliminary indications are that the unauthorised disclosure has all the hallmarks of reports generated on the internal administrative systems of the electoral commission so we can almost exclude a breach of security or a breach of data from outside. We think the disclosure (of) unauthorised (informtion) was done by one of our staff members.”

Shiburi added that the IEC has reported the leaks to the relevant authorities for further investigation.

The documents now in the public domain include the personal information like ID numbers of the candidates included on the ANC lists.

“The Commission has authorised an inquiry to try to trace the circumstances under which the list was disclosed and the identity of the person or persons who may be capable of the release of the list.

“We have also reported the unauthorised disclosure to the Information Regulator as required by the Protection of Personal Information Act because the list contains personal information of data subjects.”

Adding to that, the IEC has also taken additional measures through the night on Friday to prevent any further leaks of election lists.

“The Commission has authorised an inquiry to understand the circumstances and the intent behind the disclosure so that appropriate actions can be taken. As we became aware of the breach overnight, we have further limited the number of people who have access to those reports, because the number was always limited. But we further limited it so that we safeguard against any other additional unauthorised disclosures.”

ANC has expressed dismay that its candidate list sent to the IEC has been leaked and broadcast online.

Without denying or confirming the accuracy of the list circulating on social media, the ANC said: “We have noted with concern that ANC candidate lists that appear to emanate from the IEC online candidate nomination system are now circulating on social media.”

“We have conveyed our concerns to the IEC about this unauthorised release of personal information in potential contravention of the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA).”

The ANC said it submitted its National and Provincial candidate lists for the 2024 National and Provincial Elections via the IEC’s online candidate nomination system today, as stipulated in the Electoral Timetable.

Meanwhile, the ANC earlier today indicated it had finally concluded and submitted its 2024 National and Provincial candidate list to the IEC, the ANC national spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri confirmed.

Bhengu-Motsiri said the ANC’s Electoral Committee had received more than 2 400 nominations and the list was whittled down to 284 names by the committee. These were the candidates that were interviewed by the Electoral Committee, chaired by former president Kgalema Motlanthe.

Bhengu-Motsiri said their list was balanced, with 52.5 percent of candidates were women and 17 percent the youth. However, she said the special National Executive Committee had gone through a rigorous process to select the candidates.

She said the Integrity Commission and the National Disciplinary Committee (NDC) of the ANC dealt with the cases of those who were implicated by the State Capture Commission.

“In terms of the names that were fingered, the Integrity Commission and the NDC cleared those comrades, you will find them in our list. They would have gone through a vetting process, which is done by the Electoral Committee. We will have the list by Monday.

“There are those that have been flagged by virtue of having been fingered in the State Capture Commission Report. They were subjected to the internal process of the ANC, going through that process up until a stage where there was an agreement that they are not eligible to stand as public representatives. I am giving you a sense that there is no such a thing as a blanket approach in the State Capture Report, because we have to test each case on its merit. The State Capture Report must be assisted by the ANC’s own internal democratic processes, “said Bhengu-Motsiri.

She said when the Integrity Commission received names of people implicated in the State Capture Commission, they were called to appear before the Integrity Commission.

This was the decision of the NEC that people implicated in the state capture report have to appear before the Integrity Commission.

Bhengu-Motsiri said the selection process and integrity commission’s work has helped them choose ethical and capable leaders. – www.fullview.co.za

Civil Society Partners To Foster Electoral Integrity

OBSERVANCE: The initiative intends to conduct independent, non-partisan observation and parallel vote tabulation of this year’s elections…

By WSAM Reporter

To promote a free and fair election for all, the Democracy Development Program (DDP) has established a program to foster electoral integrity in coming nationwide polls.

The initiative, called the Electoral Participation Integrity by Civil Society (EPICS), is believed to be the first of its kind – not only in South Africa but across the world, and has garnered support of international experts in election observation and tabulation.

EPICS comprises esteemed civil society organisations, of which global movement Unashamedly Ethical, is the latest to join the partnership. The ethos of Unashamedly Ethical is to transform society by taking a non-partisan stand for ethics, values, and clean living. The objective is to ultimately develop a robust ethical culture among the current generation of leaders as well as future leaders.

EPICS, whose vision is to foster electoral integrity, intends to employ “robust methods to meticulously monitor and evaluate” the entire electoral process, spanning from the pre-election phase to the post-election period.

Officially launched last month, EPICS strives to make a meaningful impact on the democratic landscape, ensuring transparency and accountability in every step of the electoral journey.

“A critical time as we head into our next national government election (on May 29). The intention of EPICS is not to involve themselves in party politics, but to conduct an independent, non-partisan observation and parallel vote tabulation of this year’s elections,” the multi-body forum said in a statement.

EPICS said the results of each of the initiatives would be shared with the IEC to allow them to address any peculiarities proactively.

In addition, it also seeks to ensure that independent non-partisan governance will be exercised to guarantee the process of election observation and the discharge of associated functions – “an important role in building confidence in the democratic election process; deterring potential manipulation or exposing fraud if it does occur,” it said.

Data collected would be used a combination of internationally recognised electoral observation technologies and analytical methodologies. This process will be applied by a team of highly regarded international independent experts who frequently conduct electoral observation missions.

Technical know-how coupled with practical experience was being applied to fulfil this mission in a manner that the results can withstand judicial scrutiny.

“There is no time like the present to strengthen and uphold democracy within our country, which has so much to offer for its diverse rainbow nation. As active and ethical South Africans together we can ensure that a solid electoral framework, which is enshrined within our internationally acclaimed constitution, can result in a free, fair, and democratic election process and outcome for all,” the EPICS statement added.