President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on all citizens to register to vote and to make sure that their details on the voters roll are correct ahead of next year’s elections.
“It is only through exercising the fundamental right to vote that you can truly be part of the way in which our country is governed,” said the President during his address at the National Reconciliation Day commemoration in Mthatha, in the Eastern Cape on Sunday.
He said the country was entering an election year where the people of South Africa will exercise their hard-won right to elect a government of their choosing.
“In the State of the Nation Address in February, we called for an active citizenry to join us as government to be part of the change we want to see in South Africa. A new era is upon us – an era of accountability, of renewal and of progress. We have many challenges, but they are not insurmountable if we work together.”
The Independent Electoral Commission will hold a voter registration weekend on 26 and 27 January 2019. All the country’s 22 932 voting stations will open from 8am to 5pm on the weekend.
Citizens can also verify their registration information online at https://www.elections.org.za/regweekend/.
Electoral Commission (IEC) chairperson Glen Mashinini has indicated the 2019 general elections will most likely be held in May. However, the President is expected to announce the exact date in due course.
In terms of the Constitution, the term of the current National Assembly and provincial legislatures ends on 6 May 2019 and elections must be held within 90 days thereafter. – SAnews.gov.za
