SANDILE MOTHA
PARLIAMENT is racing against time to meet the deadline for the amendments to the Electoral Act ahead of next year’s 2021 Local Government Elections.
The amendment to the piece of legislation will give green light to independent candidates to contest both national and provincial elections.
In its current form, the Electoral Act 73 of 1998 only allows political parties to contest elections in provincial legislatures and national parliament.
On 11 June this year, in what was heralded as a new dawn and a victory to ordinary citizens, the Constitutional Court ruled that the act was invalid.
Presiding Constitutional Court Judge Mbuyiseli Madlanga said the act in its current form infringes on the rights of citizens to exercise their individual political choices.
The court subsequently gave parliament 24 months in order to effect the necessary amendments to the Electoral Act.
On Tuesday, parliament convened virtually to deliberate on how
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