Top guns for IEC posts
Chikane, Moepya among candidates
Twenty-six candidates have been short-listed for three vacancies at the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC).
The list includes the commission’s former chief electoral officer Mosotho Moepya and Competition Tribunal member Yasmin Carrim.
Non-profit company My Vote Counts and the Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution have compiled a comprehensive report on the candidates which highlights their skills‚ experiences and interests.
The information was garnered by researchers that relied on CVs and submitted to the Office of Chief Justice.
Among the candidates is Moses Chikane‚ a high-profile anti-apartheid activist who was imprisoned on Robben Island for a year in 1998 following the Delmas Treason Trial.
Chikane was an MP from 1994 to 2004 and was then appointed as ambassador to Germany between 2004 and 2008. He was later appointed High Commissioner to Zambia from 2008 to 2012.
Carrim has been an acting judge of the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria‚ and she was a founding trustee of the Women’s Legal Centre‚ which focuses on women’s rights.
The report said Rev Bongani Finca‚ during his tenure as commissioner of the IEC‚ had joined his colleagues in speaking out against misconduct that had led to the resignation of former IEC chairwoman Pansy Tlakula.
It said Finca’s seven-year term at IEC was set to expire this year by ordinary application of the rules and he was eligible for reappointment.
About Moepya‚ the report said as chief electoral officer of the IEC‚ he oversaw both the 2014 national and provincial elections and the 2016 local government elections.
The report said the 2013 public protector report had indicated that due to improper conduct on Moepya’s part‚ he should face disciplinary action. “No disciplinary action had been taken at the time of his departure in 2017‚” the report said. –