People cast their vote on trust

WITH the elections in May, every politician is visibly canvassing and appealing for votes for their respective parties.

Different types of “vote catching” promises and commitments are made to the public.

The electorate votes for the parties whose political statements, principles and strategies are most convincing without getting any binding commitment from the party.

People cast their vote on trust hoping the promises will be fulfilled.

Sadly, many of these promises are just election promises and not fulfilled as evidenced over the past few elections.

An election manifesto or promise cannot be binding on the party as there is no structure to enforce the manifesto or promise.

Hence, I believe that election promises should rather be a contractual contract between the party and voters.

In the event of not delivering or fulfilling the election contract, the party can be taken to court for not executing the contract.

This forthcoming election, unfortunately, is occurring in the context of widespread political corruption, lack of service delivery, and the rising cost of living.

As we look forward to the national government elections, let us all join our efforts to promote a culture of human rights, rule of law, service delivery, good governance, transparency and accountability. In a young democracy like South Africa, active citizenship is one of the most important requirements towards nation building and creating strong communities.

MOHAMED SAEED Pietermaritzburg