Johannesburg - The court application that intends to shake up the voting system in the country has received a boost, with more individuals joining the fight as amici curiae (friends of the court).
On the other hand, Cope, which has a vested interest in the matter, was weighing whether to join proceedings in support of the New Nation Movement (NNM), the main applicant.
The party brought a private member's bill to Parliament intended to allow independent candidates to run for provincial and national elections.
The application made to the Constitutional Court by the NNM, a non-profit organisation, sought to force amendment of the Electoral Act to allow independent candidates to stand for provincial and national elections.
It was partly heard just six days before the May 8 elections. The Concourt ruled that the NNM failed to make out a case for hearing urgently.
Justice Edwin Cameron announced that the application would be heard in August so that more parties could join court proceedings as amici curiae.
The applicants have been bolstered by individuals who have already joined as friends of the court. Pierre du Toit, an emeritus professor of political science at Stellenbosch University, filed an affidavit saying the electoral system was inconsistent with the Constitution for precluding independent candidates in national and provincial elections.
The system left voters with no room to hold parliamentarians accountable. “It also weakens the one remaining method of leverage the voter has - to vote the rascals out at the next election.”
Dr Michael Louis said: “The closed party-list system has the effect that political parties choose their representatives and not the electorate.”
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