Home Big Interview Maqutu warns political big guns against non-compliance

Maqutu warns political big guns against non-compliance

by Lesotho Times
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…vows to deny funding to parties that fail to adhere to electoral laws

…says preparations for local government elections in full swing

INDEPENDENT Electoral Commission (IEC) Director of Elections, Advocate Mphaiphele Maqutu, has warned political parties big and small, to abide by the country’s electoral laws failing which they would suffer the consequences of their actions.

Adv Maqutu further told Lesotho Times Deputy Editor, Bongiwe Zihlangu, in an exclusive interview this week how far the IEC had gone with preparations for the upcoming local government elections, including soliciting the support of state security agencies such as the Lesotho Mounted Police Service (LMPS), National Security Service (NSS) and Lesotho Defence Force (LDF) for the much-anticipated poll.

Below are excerpts from the interview.

LT: Could you please tell us where the IEC is in terms of preparedness for the local government elections. After all, the 29th of September, which is polling day, is just around the corner.

Maqutu: Government tried in terms of provision of our full budget as approved by parliament. Granted, the budget is not exactly what we had submitted. We had, after cutting to the bone, submitted a request for an amount of M316 million. But parliament eventually gave us M300 million in line with the budget ceiling allocation of the ministry of finance. I am pleased to say that we received that amount in full, which then ensures our ability to engage with suppliers timeously, to see that we procure all the necessary things that we need to ensure that we are ready for the 29th of September. That stands us in good stead.

LT: How is the M16 million shortfall affecting the IEC?

Maqutu: So, on the financial side of things, we still have that shortfall of about M16 million, which I must say even though I’ve just said we are very thankful, there is still that challenge. You will appreciate that local government elections are actually a bit more challenging than national assembly elections in the sense that here we are dealing with about 950 electoral divisions as opposed to your 80 constituencies. So, even in terms of those finer details like moving electoral material to those different electoral divisions, by its very nature, this election is more complex.

Elections by their very nature are very sensitive. That then means we have to engage the police, who in turn use reservists. This is because we don’t have enough police to cover the length and breadth of what an election would take. The police will have to engage reservists this time as they also do in national elections, but more so now that we are dealing with local government elections. Now, the budget that we have that the police have submitted which will allow them to assist us, without mentioning figures, is a budget that we cannot afford to accommodate. But that does not mean that it is all doom and gloom. I’ll be having a meeting with the Commissioner of Police at his earliest convenience so that we can at least see how to tackle this problem. Fortunately, elections aren’t a problem of the IEC only. It’s a national project. And I want to underscore this: I want to appeal to the authorities that finance the commissioner of police to give him the budget so that he will be able to deploy the full strength that he will be comfortable with. With the IEC budget, I cannot afford the full budget that the commissioner has submitted. I don’t have that much because the central government hasn’t provided the full budget that I had requested. I am very hopeful that my meeting with him will be a very productive one in terms of finding a common ground. We don’t want a situation where, after the elections, the police will say that the IEC didn’t give them enough resources to execute their duties effectively. I am sure that the commissioner knows that even on a normal day, policing is something that falls squarely within his mandate, while during elections it comes at a more intense scale.

LT: Do you need only the police or are you looking to solicit support from other state security agencies?

Maqutu: Yes. We have the National Security Service (NSS). They have also requested a very, very strong deployment. Fortunately, their budget is not as far-reaching as that of the police, so at least on the NSS side, I have been able to scrounge here and there to find where I could make cuts to accommodate their budget. There’s also the Commander of the Lesotho Defence Force (LDF). Once again, we work very, very closely and I had a fruitful meeting with him, where he assured and pledged that he will give all the necessary support I would require for all electoral material to reach those hard-to-reach places timeously. Honestly, all the accolades to the Commander for also reaching out and appreciating that I wouldn’t have the kind of budget that he would need. So, he will also need to touch base with those he will need to work with. Like the Commissioner of Police, he (LDF Commander), also has a national mandate to ensure that elections are a success. My hearty thanks on behalf of the IEC to the Commander for always ensuring, without buying his face, that he delivers on his promises. So, that’s on the security side of elections.

LT: Where is the IEC in terms of voter-education and who have you engaged for that aspect of the elections?

Maqutu: Because of the limited budget, once again here we’ve had to make cuts. We went through this with a selective tendering process whereby we only limited ourselves to a certain group of the NGO fraternity that has done this work for the IEC before; and also, a grouping that, when we sent out the tender or expression of interest for civic and voter-education during the national elections that we held last year, responded to that call. There are about 17 such. So, we restricted our catchment to those 17, as I say, in line with the procurement processes that govern us. And we are governed by the government procurement processes that allow for selective tendering where instances dictate and qualify for such. And we did it squarely according to what the prescripts of that selective tendering process require. So, as I said, there was that 17 catchment that came as a result of them having responded at an earlier time to that open tender and advert. We now have 17 on our database. Out of that we then selected six who are already on the ground extensively and quickly, to make sure that they intensify efforts that the IEC had already undertaken. As IEC, we started at the beginning of the year, towards March, our electoral education which is the embodiment of both voter and civic education. And now, just for purposes of intensification, we have engaged the NGO groupings. As I said, it has been done within the budgetary limits on what I could accommodate. We have a lot of very big NGO groups that have been tried and tested, and we also have those that represent groups that are marginalised, such as the disabled and women. As part of inclusiveness in electioneering, we are bound by best practices to ensure that marginalised groups are not left behind. So, that has been our approach.

LT: How is the participation of political parties in terms of campaigns and the like, for the 2023 local government elections?

Maqutu: I would like to mention that we must remember that elections are not only for the IEC. Right now, due to the absence of campaign funding for the local government elections, honestly there are about a handful, if not less than a handful, of political parties that are holding rallies to encourage their members to go to the polls. And that is very disappointing on our part as the IEC, to note that political parties will only respond when government gives them money. They don’t go to elections because they don’t feel that they have something to deliver to the electorate. But for those that are holding rallies, we are thankful because, honestly speaking, we organise and hold elections. But those people who want to be elected must take part, pull their weight, and come to the party. So, that hasn’t happened, and it is very sad. But maybe another school of thought would be that they don’t have the requisite funding. But look, when you go into this space, you have to put skin in the game. You can’t just register a party when you have no prospect whatsoever, of actually ensuring that you are able to attract following.

LT: Based on what you’ve just said, would you say most of these political parties are established primarily for the purpose of dipping their hands into the cookie jar?

Maqutu: Look, I wouldn’t say that. But what I can tell you is that from many quarters, there are people who suspect that. As the IEC, I won’t say that, but the writing is on the wall when you look at some, I won’t say all, of those parties who will take campaign funding where it is available and field as little number of candidates as possible. Then you will wonder why they register the parties in the first instance. So, for those who behave that way, I think the writing is on the wall. You will remember we also had incidents of political parties who, when they were supposed to take funding from us to pay party agents, they started stealing from themselves. It is clear that such parties never had the intention to electioneer or play in the electioneering space. It can be interpreted as a way of self-enrichment, which is very regrettable because we live in a country that falls under the least-developed countries category. If the parties can use that money that is hardly there in the fiscus for self- enrichment, that is something to frown upon.

LT: What is the IEC doing to put measures in place to ensure political party compliance as required by the law?

Maqutu: As the IEC, we are working very hard this time around to ensure that political party compliance is taken seriously. This is why you see this move of deregistering political parties, who clearly are now even flouting provisions of the law. And this is just the beginning. There will be more.

LT: Is that to say even your so-called key political parties are not beyond reproach?

Maqutu: Oh, absolutely! Remember that as the IEC, we look at all political parties the same. Rest assured, and I want this to come out clearly, that as the IEC, we will not hesitate to even take on the big guns if they fail to comply. It is uniformity for all and allegiance to  none. That’s our motto here. We will treat everybody the same. So, honestly, those heavyweights…. the writing is on the wall. Make sure that you play your part. As the IEC, we have no interest, we will just look at those that are non-compliant. No matter how big or small you are, we will enforce compliance. And in fact, I have written a letter to all political parties, telling them that those who haven’t reported both in terms of campaign funding as well as reporting on party agents, they are not going to get another cent from the IEC. And we are going to enforce that. I can assure you we will enforce that, well of course, within the parameters of what the law allows us. If there is someone who has funding that is outstanding and it has not been reported, honestly, it’s not personal. We will not give you money. They should know that for a fact.

LT: As you well know, there are always concerns about the defective voter’s roll, which the IEC says is updated the more people register or update their information. Where are we now? How does it look?

Maqutu: Honestly, we have been getting positive feedback from the electorate who go to their respective electoral divisions to check transfers and verify their information on the voter’s roll. We are getting encouraging feedback, which stands us in good stead in terms of the upcoming local government elections. But let’s remember once again, that the accuracy of the voter’s roll is dependent upon people actually coming to check their names; to ensure accuracy and whether the places they purport to have transferred their names to, are actually appearing on the voter’s roll. And intermittently, we issue different versions of the voter’s roll until we get to the final one. Next week, we will be issuing the final roll, and it is what voters will see in their respective electoral divisions on voting day. I therefore appeal to people to come and verify their information on the voter’s roll to ensure a successful election.

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