Multi-Party Charter calls on young South Africans to take charge of their future by registering this weekend so they can vote for a new government in 2024

1 February 2024

Today, 1 February 2024, the eleven parties to the Multi-Party Charter for South Africa have come together to hold a Joint Registration Event at the Johannesburg City Hall, to encourage all eligible voters to use the upcoming registration weekend of 3-4 February to register so that they can vote for change in the 2024 general election later this year.

We appeal especially to young people to register. Young people have the most to gain but also the most to lose in 2024. Only if they are registered can they use the power of their vote to choose a better future for themselves – a future based on the Multi-Party Charter’s vision of a new government to build a just, inclusive and prosperous South Africa based on opportunity, freedom and security for all its citizens.

The 2024 election is the one time that power lies in the hands of the people rather than in the hands of politicians. 2024 is the one time that ordinary South Africans can bring the change they want to see – peacefully at the ballot box. But they can only bring that change if they are registered to vote.

The future is literally in your hands. This opportunity to bring in a new government that can get South Africa moving forward again may not come again in 2029. It is unlikely that the ANC will respect the rules of democracy once they are no longer assured of winning elections.

Much like ZANU-PF in Zimbabwe, the ANC will find ways to steal the vote to stay in power, just like they have stolen so many other things from South Africa. So, 2024 is the nation’s golden opportunity to install a new government and get rid of the ANC 2024 is without doubt a critical moment in South Africa’s history. For the first time since 1994, there is a realistic, credible pathway to power for an alternative government to replace the ANC – a government made up of parties that are all committed to building a capable, caring, accountable state.

This is the first election where ANC support will fall well below 50%. The ANC is literally falling apart. They are in retreat and on the defensive. At the same time, the Multi-Party Charter is growing, uniting more parties and people around our shared values which are:

1. The South African Constitution, the rule of law, and equality before the law;

2. Decentralising power to the lowest effective level of government;

3. Accountable, transparent government with zero tolerance for corruption;

4. Capable government that spends public money efficiently to deliver quality services to all;

5. Caring government that puts people first and prioritises the poor;

6. An open market economy;

7. Policies guided by evidence that they produce positive results for society; and

8. Redress our unjust past by promoting non-racialism and unity in our diversity.

Under the Ramaphosa administration, South Africa’s decline has accelerated, with every measure of socioeconomic wellbeing moving decisively in the wrong direction. Unemployment, crime, poverty, suffering, and the cost of living are all going up. But everyone needs to understand that things can still get a lot worse. Or things can get a lot better.

Using the power of the vote, South Africans can bend the country’s trajectory towards shared prosperity and success under a new multi-party government. But they can only do so if they are registered to vote in this new multi-party government.

The parties to the Multi-Party Charter are committed to the following priorities and have agreed on a plan to achieve them. We are presenting this plan to voters in the run-up to the 2024 election.

Last week, we kicked this off by presenting our plan for growing the economy and creating jobs.

1. Growing the economy and creating jobs;

2. Ending loadshedding and achieving energy security;

3. Achieving law and order that combats crime, corruption and drugs;

4. Ensuring quality education that delivers opportunities for all;

5. Delivering basic services to all through high quality infrastructure;

6. Building a professional public service that delivers to all, and ending cadre deployment;

7. Ensuring quality healthcare for all within a caring healthcare system; and

8. Building a social relief framework for South African households living in poverty.

South Africans must use the power of their vote to choose these while they still can. That means they must register while they still can.

This coming weekend is their last chance to register physically by going to their nearest voting station, with their green bar-coded ID or their smartcard ID. South Africa, your future is in your hands!

Issued by Multi-Party Charter, 1 February 2024