Nedlac and churches call for violence-free polls

As election fever hots up, organised labour and churches are pulling out all the stops to achieve peaceful polls.

Making a call to employers to enable workers to vote on 29 May, the National Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) said voters should exercise” their fundamental constitutional right to participate in the election and cast their votes”.

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“While election day is a public holiday, there are still workers who are required to work on this day, including those in essential services, retail and agricultural sectors.

“Our democracy is only sustainable if every registered voter is allowed to vote on election day. We encourage all employers to observe election day as a paid public holiday and where possible, give workers the day off.

“This will enable all eligible workers to cast their votes and reduce pressure on voting stations as people rush to vote at night. It will also avoid voters being at risk of crime at night,” said the Nedlac social partners in a joint statement.

Meanwhile the SA Council of Churches (SACC) will tomorrow host a national prayer for peaceful elections at the Grace Bible Church in Soweto. According to acting SACC general secretary Mzwandile Molo, the multi-denominational service will be led by SACC president Archbishop Thabo Makgoba.

“Prayer and supplication will be offered for all electoral structures, law enforcement, participating political parties and candidates.

“The grace of God inspires a peaceful and joyous expression of the will of the citizens, parties and independent candidates.

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“The central players are the collective object of our prayers. The service will be attended by representatives from the Electoral Commission of South Africa, the SA Police Service, representatives of political parties and independent candidates,” said Molo.

The SACC, he said, acknowledged that the signing of the IEC electoral code of conduct by all political parties demonstrated “a commitment to upholding the requirements of a violencefree election.

There have been very few reports of violence or intimidation in the campaigning journey thus far and our call is for all political parties to uphold this commitment by all means.

“We all have a common need, which is the resolution of all the big national challenges we face.

“To the faith community, this becomes especially important because churches are at the forefront of understanding the needs of the most vulnerable in society.

“It is therefore in the collective interests of all South Africans that the seventh general election is conducted fairly, peacefully and for the good of all.

“It is our responsibility to stand for peace within our churches and in our country,” said Molo.