Cape Town – The Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has said that former president Jacob Zuma’s disqualification from running for a seat in the National Assembly will not affect the ballot paper.
On Monday, the Constitutional Court ruled that Zuma could not run for public office due to his 15-month jail sentence for contempt, overturning the Electoral Court’s previous decision.
The IEC sought clarification from the Constitutional Court on its authority to enforce Section 47(1)(e) of the Constitution regarding candidate eligibility.
With this ruling, the IEC said it can now proceed with election preparations confidently, EWN reported.
Despite being removed from the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party’s parliamentary list, Zuma will still be featured as the face of the MK Party on the ballot paper.
According to The Citizen, political analysts and a senior politician have reassured Zuma and the MK party not to worry about the Constitutional Court ruling that barred him from being a parliamentary candidate.
Despite the ruling, analysts, including independent political analyst Goodenough Mashego,said that the MK party’s election prospects remain unaffected since Zuma’s image will still appear on the ballot paper.
“The Constitutional Court ruling will not affect the MK party in the upcoming elections because the image of Jacob Zuma will still appear on the ballot paper.
“Remember, people are supporting the party simply because they love Zuma. Whether he goes to parliament or not, it does not matter,” the report quoted Mashego as saying.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
