‘VOTE FOR WOMEN’ CAMPAIGN RAISES LEGAL QUESTIONS

MBABANE –The ongoing ‘Vote for Women’ campaign has raised legal questions.

A legal source approached this newspaper to enquire from the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) about the legality of the campaigns. Preferring to tackle the issue on condition of anonymity, he said the campaigns could be in breach of Section 27 (3) of the Elections Act, 2013. Reads Section 27 (3) (c) reads: “The commission shall publish a notice in the gazette stating that the proclamation has been made and the notice shall specify − (c) the period of campaigning after the primary elections but before the secondary elections.” Section 43 provides that a campaign meeting shall not be held within 24 hours before the polling day. “My brother, this Vote for Women Campaign is a serious thing, and it’s happening before the EBC’s publication of the campaign period. A gazette has not yet been published, but there is a campaign that is unfair to men,” he voiced out his feelings. Sipho Gumedze, a Human Rights attorney, said he personally felt that the ‘Vote for Women Campaign’ was legit and legal as it offended nobody. However, he said any person who complained about it as being unfair was also ‘making a valid point.’ He said the complaining people, could argue that it was occurring before the issuance of the EBC specifying the campaign period.

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“That’s all I can say, I feel the ‘Vote for women  campaign’ doesn’t contravene any law, at the same time, we have to listen to the people who are complaining about it because they have a valid reason to complain,” Gumedze said. Prince Mhlaba, the EBC Chairperson said it was true that the campaign should be before general elections begin and only during the campaign period. This is after the general elections would have started.  “I take the correction and indeed we shall, as EBC, guide appropriately. It’s quite a legitimate observation that we need to urgently guide correctly,” the chairperson said. He said it was an oversight that has been occasioned by the assumption of the prevailing affirmative action attitude and character understood to be allowed to prevail, yet they should have issued a regulation specifically putting the public on notice regarding this matter. “Going forward, we shall address this with clarity and certainty for the public and institutions to be appropriately guided,” assured the chairperson, “so much for embracing the critical eye of the fourth estate,” he said. “This is indeed the positive that should come out of leveraging from your intermediation as the fourth estate.  I will take this one up immediately with the commission.”

Meanwhile, Nonhlanhla Dlamini, the Executive Director of Swatini Action Group Against Abuse (SWAGAA), said only a candidate could campaign, not institutions that have been conducting civil education from time immemorial. She said campaign and civic education on elections were different. “Civic education is different from campaigning. This is not a campaign but civic education on the importance of having women in decision-making bodies like Parliament,” she said. “I am not a candidate for any political position and I am at liberty to urge people to vote for women.” The executive director mentioned that she would be campaigning if she were to say ‘vote for Mrs. X.’ “We don’t mention names during our civic education, we only urge emaSwati to consider voting for women,” she elaborated.

The SWAGAA executive director said His Majesty the King, Her Majesty the Queen Mother and Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Themba Masuku also emphasised on the importance of voting for women. “Doesn’t that mean the King was campaigning? It’s just raising awareness about the obligation in terms of global conventions to consider voting for women,” she said. She said people who were campaigning were those who are currently donating rice to the electorate in contravention of the law. She said they were not campaigning when they called for the consideration of people living with disabilities.  At a workshop at Esibayeni Lodge on Monday, women organisations pointed out that their presence in Parliament would guarantee durable peace and balanced policies. United Nations Development Pragramme (UNDP) Deputy Resident Representative David Omozaufoh said the country was underutilising its own resources by not electing women to Parliament.

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He further mentioned that policies would be balanced because they considered other factors before taking decisions. Rwanda is the first country in the world with female majority in Parliament with 61.3 per cent. He was speaking during the Lutsango LwakaNgwane Capacity Building Workshop. “When we have the population of women and men working together, sharing their resources, it is better for the country,” Omozaufoh said as quoted by the Times of Eswatini in its Friday edition. Mpendulo Masuku from the DPM’s Office said the country has laws supporting the participation of women in Parliament.  Section 28 (1) of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Eswatini provides that “women have the right to equal treatment with men and that right shall include equal opportunities in political, economic and social activities.” Section 84 (2) provides that “the women of Swaziland (Eswatini) and other marginalised groups have a right to equitable representation in Parliament and other public structures.” Section 86 (1) states that “where at the first meeting of the House after any general election it appears that female members of Parliament will not constitute at least 30 percentum (30 per cent) of the total membership of Parliament, then, and only then, the provisions of this section shall apply.”

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