Top IEC officials caught in ‘smear campaign’

THE battle to succeed Pansy Tlakula as election chief has turned ugly with anonymous claims that some IEC commissioners are living it up at taxpayers’ expense.

The apparent smear campaign targets IEC commissioners Terry Tselane, Bongani Finca and Raenette Taljaard.

The claims consist of allegations of spending on hotels, food and wine and overcharging of phone bills and time on company business.

According to slips sent to the Sunday Times, Tselane, the IEC deputy chairman, entertains “stakeholders” at top restaurants.

On August 16 last year, he spent R2 700 at a restaurant. A week later, he spent R1 500 at the same restaurant.

IEC spokesman Marco Granelli said the claims “confirm the IEC’s view that this is a smear campaign to besmirch the reputation of the electoral commission and its commissioners”. He said the IEC noted that the timing of the campaign was linked to the pro- cess of appointing a new chair.

An IEC insider said the claims could come from a disgruntled former IEC stakeholder who wanted to prevent one of Tselane, Finca and Taljaard from replacing Tlakula.

Parliament will soon finalise the nomination of candidates for the position. President Jacob Zuma will then choose a chair from among all the IEC commissioners.

Granelli said any evidence could be handed to the public protector.

He said the claim that some commissioners spent little time at work was untrue, because they were not officebound.

Regarding claims that Finca operated from an East London hotel, Granelli said most activities of the electoral commission took place at local and provincial levels. The IEC approved the establishment of Finca’s Eastern Cape office for cost-efficiency, he said.

Regarding restaurant bills, Granelli said all claims by Tselane were in line with IEC policies. “In most organisations — including the National Treasury — senior executives are provided with entertainment allowances as part of their role in engaging with stakeholders.”

Granelli said all cost claims by Taljaard were correctly submitted and approved. Taljaard said she had requested the auditor-general to investigate the allegations against her. The auditor-general found no wrongdoing by her.

In an e-mail sent to the Sunday Times, Finca described the anonymous claims as a “maliciously attempt to impugn my work ethic”.