LETTER: IEC’s problems were minor
Challenges had a negligible effect on the credibility of the elections overall
The aggrieved political parties should accept the election results in the interest of the country. The Electoral Commission of SA (IEC) conceded that there were logistical problems, voter anomalies at polling stations and incidents of unskilled people being recruited to serve as IEC officials at various voting stations. This was at the expense of unemployed graduates who could have been absorbed as part of a learnership programme. However, these challenges had a negligible effect on the credibility of the elections overall, which were relatively free and fair. The margin of miscalculation can be attributed to multiple voting as cheaters attempted to bypass malfunctioning card reader machines. This was an aberration — the IEC and political parties seemingly did not foresee the smart ID posing any threat to the voting process. Because the stakes were so high and the risk of riotous protest significant, the statistician-general audited the most overt irregularities and found no impac...
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