Pretoria - The IEC has launched an investigation as it attempts to calm speculations about possible voter fraud with reports of some individuals being able to vote twice.
IEC commissioner Mosotho Moepya held a late-night briefing on Wednesday night in an attempt to dismiss any possibilities of voter fraud.
There were two instances in which certain individuals claimed that they were able to bypass the security measures put in place by the IEC to stop attempts of voter fraud.
In one of the instances, an individual said he was able to vote twice after visiting a different voting station when he noticed that his ID had not been stamped.
Moeypa said the commission views these allegations as concerning and serious and has launched investigations into the matters.
He said the commission was confident that the various security measures it has in place were strong enough to curb attempts at voter fraud.
The following measures are used by the IEC to curb voter fraud;
- The voters’ roll which only allows registered voters to vote – and only allows for a single registration per voter
- The requirement for voters to produce a valid ID document before they vote
- The scanning of ID documents prior to voting
- The marking of a voter’s thumb with ink
- The completion of a form containing the details of voters and the signing of a sworn declaration by voters where they vote at a voting station at which they are not registered
- Party agents and observers monitoring all aspects of the voting, counting and results capturing process
- In-built system-based exception reports for which various tolerance levels have been set
Picture: Courtney Africa/African News Agency(ANA)
Moyepa has urged the public to report instances they suspect there has been voter fraud.
“Where evidence is found to support electoral fraud, the Electoral Commission will firstly quarantine the results of the affected voting districts and secondly will pursue criminal charges against the perpetrators. The electoral process also allows for objections to be raised by political parties throughout the process. This includes instances where they believe a voter was ineligible to vote or has voted more than once,” he said.
“The Electoral Commission appeals to any party or person who may have evidence of any electoral fraud or significant irregularity to report this immediately so that it can be thoroughly investigated. The Electoral Commission will not allow the potential misconduct of one or two individuals – be they voters or election officials – to taint the overall outcome of these elections.”
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