Newly formed political party (ELF) Economic Liberators Forum staged a protest at the IEC headquarters in Centurion on Friday afternoon demanding a certificate.
More than 300 ELF members march from Centurion Shisanyama to IEC house holding placards and singing revolutionary songs.
The president of the party Hulisane Mani also joined the protest and other ELF members.
The party demands IEC to give them certificates to qualify of the election.
The party is allegedly accusing the IEC of being bias and prevented them from registering as a political party.
The party calls on the IEC commissioner to intervene and investigate the matter.
The party threatens to sleep at the IEC house next week if they don’t receive the certificates.
“We have submitted the appeal to the IEC on the 12 of February 2024 and two weeks later we have not received any response from IEC.
They only response we got was the acknowledgment of receipt of our appeal.
“We are worried that this are just delay tactics to make sure that we don’t find ourselves in the ballot paper because they know that we will only be left with 2 days to do all the comply that is require in order to contest legislature and also to contest national parliament,” said ELF president Hulisani Mani.
Hulisane said it our view we believe probably that those who have objected us specifically EFF they probably have people that they influence over because we can tell that IEC is not being impartial but is very bias.
We know that there is no time they should have priotised our case so that they able to give us response, so we are able to campaign fairy like any other political party.
“We can’t print posters or do manifesto launch because IEC is bias, and we don’t have the certificate in our hands.
We are calling for the commissioner to intervene because they are going to ruin the good reputation of the IEC,” fumed Hulisane.
Hulisane explained that we still believe in the IEC but we believe there are rotten officials within IEC that must be exposed.
We want to know why our application is being delayed and why our appeal is not being entertained.
Economic Liberators Forum, the IEC is of the opinion that their branding is similar to that of the Economic Freedom Fighters led by Julius Malema.
This happened early in February when EFF raised objections regarding the ELF party’s logo and colours which they claim are similar to that of their party, namely EFF.
The party’s leader Hulane Mani addressed his supporters outside the IEC and informed them that the Deputy Commissioner would consider their submissions.
“Liberators, we are going to trust in the IEC process as clarified to us by the Deputy Commissioner,” he said.
“We are expecting a response on Monday, failing which we will be visitors of the IEC again on Tuesday,” said Mani.
“Liberators, let’s s remain discipline and united,” he said.
“The path we have chosen is a difficult one, but it can’t be true that 30 years after the advent of democracy in South Africa this country, we are still poor,” he said.
“This means the system that we are using is not working and must be changed,” he said.
“Come 29 May 2024 we will be votes into power,” vowed Mani
IEC deputy chief electoral Akhtari Henning said there is two matters that comes with, one is a response to the appeal on the logo that is currently on the shirt that just said ELF and they lodge an appeal.
“We have committed to them that we will give a response anytime between now until Monday morning on this appeal of the logo,” Hennings said.
She said the president of the party Hulisane Mani has us that they are registering another name or party.
There is a public process which themselves confirm has 14 days period which closed on business 5pm today.
“In terms of due process, the IEC has to check whether there’s any objective or comments or issues that comes from the public process and then we will provide them a response on that,” she said.