Here’s how you can become a Cope MP

The Congress of the People (Cope) has opened its doors to members of the public to join the party in the fight against corruption as members of parliament.

This comes as Cope attempts to make a comeback at the May 2019 elections after an internal squabble that cast a dark shadow over the once-promising party.

The party’s new general secretary, Papi Kganare, announced in a half-filled room, with only two people in the audience wearing its branded T-shirts, that the opportunity for the public to avail themselves as Cope representatives had opened on Monday.

Kganare said people’s availability to serve South Africa would require them to be a registered member of the party, registered with the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) as a voter, and accepting of both the IEC parliament regulations and Cope’s guidelines and procedures.

“This process is important to us because we don’t want people to say they were nominated or elected by the people, but create problems later,” he said.

“We are saying everyone has the right and, if they feel they can represent the party and serve South Africa, they have the right to make themselves available.”

Kganare confirmed that the deadline for submissions was February 25, which would then be followed by a decision-making process that would start on February 28 and end on March 3.

Cope president Mosiuoa Lekota said the party was focusing on dealing with issues of corruption that resulted in politicians pocketing public funds.

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