Johannesburg - The IEC has weighed in on the controversy around the citizenship of former Tshwane MMC for transport Sheila Senkubuge, saying it had verified her citizenship before it entered her on the voters’ roll.
Senkubuge, who has been embroiled in a sex scandal with embattled mayor Stevens Mokgalapa, had her woes piling up last week when a criminal complaint was filed regarding allegations that she was not a naturalised South African citizen when her name was included by the DA on the candidates list for a councillor position ahead of the 2016 local government elections.
On Friday, Senkubuge resigned both as a PR councillor and from her MMC position.
DA provincial leader John Moodey however refused to account for recruiting Senkubuge and called on the IEC to explain its processes and called for law to take its course.
On Sunday, the IEC spokesperson Kate Bapela said it was the Home Affairs Department that was the custodian of the country’s citizenship.
Babapela said the commission’s responsibility was that compiling and maintaining the national voters’ roll.
She said this included the verification of details of candidates against the National Population Register (NPR).
“Only holders of identity numbers that are accorded citizenship status on the NPR are entered into the voters’ roll.
“In the context of the processes outlined above, the Electoral Commission confirms that Ms Senkubuge was verified as a citizen and thus placed on the voters roll. It is on this basis that she was able to contest as a candidate in the 2016 general elections of municipal councils,” Bapela said.