Cape Town — The African National Congress (ANC) and uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) faced off in the Electoral Court today as the ruling party challenged MK’s registration process to contest this year’s elections.
The ANC wanted the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) to review the MK party’s registration as it felt the party did not following the due process when registering. ANC claimed MK unlawfully supplemented a defective application instead of submitting a new one, something which both the MK and IEC reject.
However, following a six hour debate, judgement has been reserved as the MK party will have to wait for a decision made by the Electoral Court. What emerged from Tuesday’s meeting was whether the Electoral Court can rule on this matter as the legislation provides for an internal appeals process, EWN reported.
According to The Citizen, IEC’s counsel Advocate Terry Motau argued that the ANC failed to challenge the registration of the MK party in the Electoral Court in time so there was no jurisdiction. He said the ANC had an unsuccessful appeal with the commission and he felt the process should have ended there.
[WATCH] IEC’s legal representative Adv. Terry Motau SC says there is no credible explanation by the ANC to challenge the Deputy Chief Electoral Officer’s decision in relation to the registration of the MK Party.#Newzroom405 #ANCvsMK pic.twitter.com/GTLLLCnF8I
— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) March 19, 2024
ANC secretary-general. Fikile Mbalula, has had many words to say about former president, Jacob Zuma’s decision to leave the ANC for MK. He said the formation of the party was no accident and it an intentional effort to sow confusion among voters by exploiting the esteemed history of Umkhonto weSizwe (MK), IOL reported.
“The formation of this new party that has hijacked the name, legacy, and symbols of MK is not an accident. It is a deliberate attempt to sow confusion by using the proud history of armed struggle against the apartheid regime to lend credibility to what is a blatantly counter-revolutionary agenda,” said Mbalula.
Mbalula told the media that it was not too late to challenge the party over the use of the Umkhonto weSizwe trademark, saying Zuma’s party was stealing its legacy.
“Stealing the history, heritage, and intellectual property assets of the organisation is part of the counter-revolution propaganda aimed at communicating a multiplicity of political outposts all claiming legitimacy from the proud history of the ANC,” Mbalula stated.
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Compiled by Matthew Petersen
