LOCAL GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS IN SOUTH AFRICA A TEST FOR DISINFORMATION AND MISINFORMATION
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BY: CHANON LECODEY MERRICKS | ONLINE EDITOR M@KE K@Si GRE@T ©®™
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BY: CHANON LECODEY MERRICKS | ONLINE EDITOR
LOCAL GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS IN SOUTH AFRICA A TEST FOR DISINFORMATION AND MISINFORMATION BY : GEORGE MAGOMA
South Africa is in the grip of euphoria, a period of elections where political parties are vying for the slice of the electorate. It is a silly season of disinformation and misinformation which are obstinate to subside.
It is a season of electioneering, promises, canvassing and campaigning prone to propaganda which pierces deep into the psyche of the nation.
To regulate misinformation and disinformation, protect the credibility of the elections and to ensure free and fair elections the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) published a Code of Conduct. At the heart of the code is misinformation which is defined as false or inaccurate information shared by someone who believes it is true, without any intent to cause harm.
It involves accidentally sharing an outdated news headline or a mistaken statistic whilst disinformation is false, fabricated, or manipulated content created and shared deliberately to deceive, manipulate, or cause harm.
In the interesting times of frenzy, in reaction to the Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS), the phantom of the 2024 National General Elections was reincarnated by the views that the MTBPS was an election gimmick, promoting the ANC on the eve of the Local Government Elections to the disadvantage of other political parties.
In the Mini-Budget, the Minister of Finance announced drastic measures by cutting the fuel levy to R3.00 per litre for diesel and R1.50 per litre for petrol which astronomically hovered above R30 per litre and diesel above R33 per litre, affecting consumers hit by the wave of inflation and high fuel prices.
This cut is to become effective on the day of local government elections from 4 November to 1 December, and to continue further relief from 2 December to 5 January 2027. Using the 2024 National General Elections as an instructive precedent, let us invoke the 21 October 2024 Democratic Alliance (DA) case against President Cyril Ramaphosa (Democratic Alliance v Ramaphosa and Others (0027/2024EC) [2024] ZAEC 24) as a test to determine if the views of the Umkhonto we Sizwe Party and Economic Freedom Fighters amount to disinformation in reaction to the Minister of Finance’s announcement of the fuel levy cut emanating from the Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) delivered on the 21 October 2026.
At the core of the case in the DA v Ramaphosa before the Electoral Court is DA’s argument that President Ramaphosa’s televised national address on the SABC on 26 May 2024 (just three days before the May 29 general elections) amounted to a disguised election campaign for the African National Congress (ANC), In the broadcast the President focused on the country's election readiness and reviewed the performance of the sixth democratic administration.
He updated citizens on special votes and the overseas voting process, encouraging all registered voters to participate peacefully. In the televised address he highlighted the achievements of the government over the preceding five years, including navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, combatting state capture, addressing load-shedding, and pushing infrastructure and social support programs.
The DA accusing him of using a state broadcast as a partisan campaign tool for the African National Congress (ANC) because of the timing of the address.
In the legal papers, the President maintained that his speech was a legitimate update on state matters serving the public good, rather than calculated electioneering. In this piece, using the test applied in the DA v Ramaphosa and others as authoritative and an instructive injunction to determine whether the announcement by the Minister of Finance amounts to electioneering, or whether the views expressed by both MKP and EFF are a deliberate distortion of facts, falling within the definition of what constitutes disinformation.
This piece is a contribution to our jurisprudence and constitutionalism, free and fair elections, the resilience of our democracy, levelled fields, and an unbridled leash against the abuse of privilege and power by the ANC.
At most it tests the elasticity of what constitutes disinformation, and if the views by the EFF and MKP are in breach of the Electoral Code of Conduct and what the available remedies to the ANC are.
The tabling of the MTBPS is legislated and regulated by Section 28 of the Public Finance Management Act, 1999 (Act 1 of 1999). The Act requires the National Treasury to annually table multi-year budget projections for revenue and expenditure and key macroeconomic projections in the National Assembly. It is worth noting that the MTBPS is a legislative imperative. Context is important.
We trace the fuel cuts in South Africa. The fuel levy cut is not new to South Africa. South Africa first cut the general fuel levy on April 6, 2022, with petrol effectively dropping from R3.85 to R2.35 per litre and diesel from R3.70 to R2.20 per litre. At the time there was no elections. Ukraine and Russia were at war, triggering a rise in fuel prices.
These cuts were necessitated by a need to cushion consumers against soaring global oil prices. This intervention was not unique to South Africa, but introduced by countries across the world. The same trend continued globally after the Middle East conflict which resulted in the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
KASIBC_AFRICA The state has a responsibility to its citizenship and economic stability, and to protect consumers from economic harm and the debilitating effects of the high cost of living. The measures introduced by the Minister of Finance to cut fuel levy in South Africa cannot be interpreted as electioneering.
The arguments advanced by the EFF and MKP and other political commentators in the discourse do not pass the test applied in the case of the DA v Ramaphosa and others. On the contrary, the pendulum swings back to the EFF and MKP. Their views border on falsehoods and disinformation and electioneering as opposed to the true intent of the Minister of Finance to insulate consumers from the high cost of living.
The MTBPS is legislated, and not an electioneering tool. Across the world, elections are metaphorically defined as a silly season. We are in a silly season. Using this judgment as a test, there is no evidence suggesting the address unduly influenced the outcome of the forthcoming local government elections set for the 4th November on the day the fuel cut becomes effectual and the distressed populace casts its votes in a climate that is free from influence.
The writer is a political commentator. ARTICLE BY : GEORGE MAGOMA
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