African constitutionalism on deathbed

SOUTH AFRICA could be facing myriad of problems, but it is streets ahead of its peers in Africa where constitutionalism and democracy are concerned.

Local government elections, which are due this year are likely to be postponed on account of the recommendations of former Chief Justice of South Africa Dikgang Moseneke’s report which stated that it was impossible to have free and fair elections during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC), which runs elections, seems to have agreed with those findings and is now seeking to postpone the elections and recommend to government to postpone them.

However, the media briefing by the minister responsible was really enlightening. She said after seeking legal advice, their government had no legal authority to postpone elections which are constitutionally due even based on good recommendations of the Moseneke report.

That said, the election date will first be gazetted in terms of the law then the IEC will have to approach the Constitutional Court which will have a final say if at all elections must be postponed. It was also said the elections could not be postponed before they are even gazetted.

Juxtapose that with our situation back home. The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission was meant to conduct byelections in several constituencies after several seats fell vacant, but the spineless body just kowtowed to the Executive when it was ordered to stop holding byelections without reason under the guise of curbing the spread of the pandemic.