DA formally objects to ANC's nomination of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has today written to both the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) and the ANC, in terms of section 30 (1) of the Electoral Act 73 of 1998, objecting to Winnie Madikizela-Mandela's nomination as candidate to the National Assembly.

Section 47 1(e) of the Constitution states that ‘anyone... who is convicted of an offence and sentenced to more than 12 months imprisonment without the option of a fine either in the Republic, or outside the Republic if the conduct constituting the offence would have been an offence in the Republic...' is ineligible to be a Member of Parliament. According to the Constitution, ‘A disqualification under this paragraph ends five years after the sentence has been completed.'

In July 2004 Ms. Madikizela-Mandela was given a five-year sentence for fraud and theft (reduced on appeal to three and a half years) for 43 convictions of fraud. The sentence was suspended for five years. This means that her suspended sentence will only lapse in July this year by which time she would presumably have already been elected to Parliament.

The DA therefore objects to Ms. Madikizela-Mandela's nomination on the grounds that her suspended sentence has not yet lapsed and she therefore does not qualify to serve as a Member of Parliament.

It is quite extraordinary that the ANC has left it to the IEC to resolve Winnie Madikizela-Mandela's eligibility to serve as a Member of Parliament, when it is quite clear that she is still serving her suspended sentence. However, it is unsurprising that the ANC is hell bent on proceeding with her nomination despite her criminal record. The ANC's top 100 candidates on its list for Parliament is littered with individuals with a record of some form of corruption. Some of the most notable examples include:

• ANC Presidential candidate Jacob Zuma, who is currently facing 783 charges of fraud, corruption and racketeering.
• Bathabile Dlamini - no 16 on the ANC's national list - was ordered to repay R120 000 after receiving five year suspended sentence in 2006 for defrauding Parliament of R254 00 in travel vouchers in the Travelgate scandal.
• Mnyamzeli Booi - no 65 no the list - is still facing fraud charges for his role in the Travelgate Scandal.
• Beauty Dludlani - no 58 on the list - was fined R120 000 payable over 40 months for fraud involving R289 000 in the Travelgate scandal.
• Angie Molebatsi - no 84 on the list - was sentenced to pay a R25 000 fine, or three years in jail, plus an additional five year suspended sentence in the Travelgate scandal
• Duma Ndleleni - no 79 on the list: She was fined R30 000 payable over three years and given a five year suspended sentence in the Travelgate scandal.

The nomination of these individuals alongside Ms. Madikizela-Mandela clearly shows that the ANC's so-called commitment to fight corruption is nothing more than empty rhetoric. The simple reality is that the ANC rewards individuals with a history of corruption with the offer of public office.

We hope that the IEC and the ANC will both do the right thing and disqualify Ms. Madikizela-Mandela's nomination.

Statement issued by James Selfe MP, Democratic Alliance federal executive chairperson, March 17 2009