kougademocrat

There is lots of propaganda doing the rounds at the moment in the Kouga. Most people can see through it but for those who are considering changing their vote due to assertions of minority parties, lets consider the following:

The water in upper Wavecrest. Nothing will change if there is no change in government in the Kouga Council

1) South Africa has one of the best constitutions in the world. It protects your right to be a Christian.
It protects your right to own land.
It protects your right NOT to have an abortion.
It protects your right to speak Afrikaans
It protects your right to trade, have a profession and or an occupation
It protects your right to education.
It protects your right to freedom of association.

Many of the points raised in favour of the FF+ in “16 Vinnige feite”, are in contravention of the very constitution that is protecting YOUR rights and freedoms.

The Democratic Alliance holds the constitution to be the highest law in the land and will fight to protect the rights that have mentioned above and the many other rights and freedoms that ALL people in South Africa have according to OUR constitution.

2) Misleading Statements in the article “16 Vinnige feite”

a) Supports working together with the EFF. In the FF+ column, it says Nee/No and in the DA column, it says Ja/Yes, when in reality, just recently, on 5 June, both the EFF AND the FF+ decided together with the DA, not to attend one of Jacob Zuma’s speeches.

b) Lewer gratis dienste aan nie betaalers. In the DA column, it says Ja/Yes and in the FF+ it says Nee/No.

Does the FF+ realize that that means that every pensioner registered as indigent, including all those people living in the Municipal flats in places like Rustenburg and all the people who are currently unemployed will no longer have access to any water or electricity, as according to the FF+ policy, people who cannot pay for those services, will not receive them.

These are just a few of the misleading, vague and incorrect statements quoted in the article. Be very wary of casting a vote for a particular party, based on an article that is less than truthful.

Where the DA governs, it governs well.

Every year the Cape Province and the Midvaal municipality deliver better, more efficient services.

The DA have a proven track record. Lend us your vote for the next 5 years so that we can improve your services too!

Lets not split the vote in Kouga and suffer through another 5 years of corruption, lack of service delivery and a declining job market.

Widespread concerns were raised following the second registration weekend for the 2016 Municipal Elections.

After a sms went out from the IEC to about 5 million voters, requesting voters to update their address information, voters became concerned about their status on the voters’ roll.

This state of panic increased after the media reported that Mr Glen Mashinini, Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, warned that more than two thirds of the voters roll stand to be disenfranchised due to the absence of sufficient address information.

After enquiries by the DA, the IEC confirmed that once a voter is verified as a voter and has been placed on the voters’ roll, such a voter cannot be removed without an audit trail indicating who removed that voter and the reasons for that removal (if at all).

Only a voter that has applied for de-registration in terms of section 10 of the Electoral Act 1998 (Act 73 of 1998) may be removed completely from the voters’ roll.

The Electoral Commission confirmed that they have not removed from the voters’ roll, a single voter or information of a voter who was previously on the voters’ roll.

Following the events that unfolded and the concerns raised by the voters, the DA requested an updated voters’ roll from the IEC to ensure accuracy of information contained in the voters’ roll.

The DA undertakes to report and follow up on all matters of possible corruption or irregularities brought to their attention.

We are eagerly awaiting the outcome of the matter currently before the Constitutional Court, as this would provide the necessary clarity on the voters’ roll.

FAQ

1. I registered during the weekend of 5/6 March, but my information is not updated yet?

The IEC is currently experiencing a backlog with the capturing of data. If your information is still outdated on the IEC website please contact the DA’s call centre at 0861 22 55 32 to assist.

2. If I did not update my address during one of the two registration weekend, will I still be able to vote?

Nobody may be taken off the voters’ role, irrespective of the address or lack of an address on the voters’ roll. Currently the IEC has confirmed that all people currently on the voters’ roll will be able to vote on 3 August.

The Constitutional Court will on 9 May hear arguments regarding the addresses of voters on the voters’ roll and the impact that will have on the validity of the voters’ roll.

3. Can I still update my address information or re-register for the LGE2016?

If you would like to re-register in a new voting district or update your information, you may do so by taking your ID document to your nearest IEC office during office hours.

4.How would I know where my new VD is?

You can check if you are registered in the correct voting district on me.da.org.za

You can check where you are registered to vote on http://www.elections.org.za/content/default.aspx/ or sms your ID to 32810 or call 0861 22 55 32

More discrepancies in the voters roll have surfaced as the final day of the last registration weekend takes place today.

The DA team in Aston Bay

Many voters have reported that their addresses are no longer on the voters roll and they had to re-register.

“I have been voting in St Francis Bay for the past 16 years, but my address had disappeared from the voters roll,” said DA Mayoral candidate Elza Van Lingen.

“Others, like residents in St Francis Bay have been registered as living in St Francis Links, while numerous voters from Ward 8 (Wavecrest, Jeffreys Bay) who registered during the previous registration weekend, are still not on the voters roll” added Van Lingen.

Voters are urged to visit their voting stations today to make sure they are correctly registered.

The election date for the Municipal elections are the 3 August.

Voters can also visit the IEC office in Humansdorp to update their information on the voters roll.

Once the date of the election has been promulgated in the Government Gazette, the voters roll will be closed and no more registrations will be allowed.

The Electoral  Court has postponed the controversial by-elections that were scheduled to be held in the Tlokwe Municipality for a period of six weeks.

The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) has subsequently decided to postpone all by-elections.

What does this mean for the 2016 Municipal elections?

The Electoral Court made a determination that the IEC request the North West Provincial Government to postpone the by-elections until all candidates in the Tlokwe Municipal by-elections are provided with “a copy or segment of the voters’ roll to be used in their respective wards in the municipal by-elections, including the addresses of all voters, where these addresses are available”.

At this stage the voters roll country wide, including Kouga, does not include the addresses of the all the voters.

The Court made this ruling after evidence was presented of voters being bussed into a particular ward and registering to vote in that ward.

Without addresses on the voters role, this kind of voter fraud will be difficult to monitor and can lead to elections being unfair and unduly influenced.

The integrity of the voters roll is of utmost importance in a constitutional democracy governed by the Rule of Law. Free and fair elections are bedrock of any democracy.

The DA will obtain legal clarity about what exactly the judgement of the Electoral Court means.

This judgement has far reaching implications for democracy in our country.

At this stage it not possible to predict whether the 2016 Municipal Elections will be postponed or not.

According to the Constitution of South Africa, the elections have to be held not later that August 2016.

Local government elections are held every five years to elect councillors who will be responsible for governing a municipality for the next five years.

A Jeffreys Bay road. Its time for change in Kouga

Locally the councillors will serve on the Kouga and Sarah Baartman district councils, that deliver services which impact the daily lives of citizens in their areas including water, electricity and sanitation.

The exact date of the 2016 Municipal Elections will only be known when the election is officially proclaimed by the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs.

However, it is fairly certain that the election will be held in August this year.

Why does my vote count?

The Kouga Council is controlled by the ANC, who have 15 Councillors and the DA is the official opposition with 14 Councillors.

Your vote can make a difference! The ANC only won the 2011 election by approximately 700 votes.

Its time for change in Kouga, and your vote will count.

To check if you are registered, sms your ID Number to 32810, or click here