A general view of MPs at the Cape Town City Hall on 22 March 2023. Picture: Gallo Images/Die Burger/Jaco Marais
The controversial Electoral Matters Amendment Bill has moved a step closer to becoming law after approval by majority of parliamentarians.
On Tuesday afternoon, the National Assembly passed the bill introduced by Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi last year.
The passing of the contentious bill comes after the draft legislation was adopted by the Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs earlier this month.
The Electoral Matters Amendment Bill seeks to amend the existing laws as a result of the Electoral Amendment Act, which was signed into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa in April 2023.
The bill in particular will change the Political Party Funding Act (PPFA).
The PPFA requires that donations of R100 000 and upwards be disclosed by parties to the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC).
The legislation, which came into effect on 1 April 2021, also limits the amount a party can receive from a single donor to R15 million annually.
However, all of these requirements will fall away in the light of the Electoral Matters Amendment Bill.
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The bill will empower the president to determine the upper limits of how much money political parties and independent candidates may accept as donations.
The draft law would further empower the president to determine the threshold at which parties and independent candidates should declare their donations.
It is important to note that the president needs a National Assembly resolution to change the donation limits or thresholds.
The legislation will revise the funding formula for political parties and independent candidates represented in legislatures, shifting towards a new allocation structure.
Under the new formula, 90% of funds will be distributed based on proportional representation, while the remaining 10% will be allocated on an equitable basis.
In a plenary session on Tuesday, the legislation received support from the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), the National Freedom Party (NFP) and the African National Congress (ANC).
The ANC previously publicly stated it wanted the PPFA to be changed so the current threshold can be increased.
The bill was flatly rejected by the Democratic Alliance (DA), the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP), the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), Freedom Front Plus (FF+), the United Democratic Movement (UDM) and GOOD, among others.
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The bill will now go through the National Council of Provinces (NCOP).
Earlier in a debate, Motsoaledi defended the bill, saying the donation formula “cannot be the same” considering independent candidates.
DA MP Adrian Roos said the bill was a “crude attempt to direct more public and private donor funds to the coffers of the ANC to help them to try and cling onto power”.
“This clauses have nothing to do with the inclusion of independent candidates,” he said.
IFP MP Liezel van der Merwe described the bill as an “unconstitutional money grab by the ruling party”.
“It is clear that under the guise of independent candidates being elected, the minister used this process to ensure that the broke ruling party is able to fill its party coffers ahead of the do or die 2024 elections [and] of course the minister will deny this,” she said.
Van der Merwe said parties will be forced to go to court if the proposed legislation was passed.
“The Electoral Matters Amendment Bill before us is unconstitutional and it’s a great threat to our democracy. If signed into law, this bill will have detrimental consequences.”
FF+ Corné Mulder questioned Motsoaledi if he and the ANC thought they will get away with this bill.
“The ANC wants us to believe that they are doing the right thing,” Mulder said.
Additionally, ACDP MP Steven Swart argued that the bill getting rid of thresholds was a cynical move and unnecessary.
UDM MP Nqabayomzi Kwankwa labelled the bill as a “smash and grab”.
“The other issue which we find extremely problematic is where we want the president to be the player and the referee at the same time.”
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Kwankwa said he believed the legislation would lead to more secrecy in political party funding.
“We want to make it clear to you that this matter is going to go to court… we are going to challenge it and you run the risk of not being able to get resources before elections or any funding for that matter.”
Meanwhile, GOOD MP Brett Herron said the bill went beyond the rational and reasonable amendments to include independent candidates.
“It is impossible to tell whether it is chicken or beef. The bill has been hijacked to include unnecessary amendments that undermine multi-party democracy.”
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