The will of South Africans has prevailed in the recent general elections. This sentiment was echoed by electoral observation missions like SADC and the African Union during their media briefing in Boksburg on Friday.
A watershed moment as South Africa’s national and provincial elections were given thumbs up by electoral observers who crisscrossed the country to ensure that the polls complied with international standards.
AU Election Observation Mission head, former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has commended the IEC for hosting peaceful elections.
“During our observations, we have witnessed the vibrancy of the South African democracy and support by the strong institutions, competitiveness, and inclusive democratic practices,” Kenyatta says.
The head of the SADC Election Observation Mission in South Africa, Enock Kavindele has raised concerns about incidents of political violence during special voting. Kavindele also says that some polling stations were inaccessible to people living with disabilities.
“Only a few isolated incidents of political violence were reported. It was a concern of the stakeholders that incidences prevented special voting and final campaign events in other areas. Apart from these isolated incidences observers deployed across the country witnessed numerous peaceful well well-planned and highly attended political rallies.”
SADC observes commend SA for peaceful elections:
Meanwhile, the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA) has hailed the IEC for running elections so efficiently.
EISA head of Election Observation Mission and former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has, however, raised issues that he says can be rectified in the future.
“Concerns we further raise about the secrecy of the ballot for the home visit due to the proximity of the voters and staff due to the layout of the house because the homes are quite tied,” says Jonathan.
South Africa has also been encouraged to enact laws that will promote gender parity, to ensure that women are well represented in the political parties list.
