The IFP has attacked as outrageous an Isolezwe and Sunday Tribune election supplement issued by the IEC, the local government department of KZN and Independent Newspapers, in which the local government MEC is given free reign to slander his political opponents and to espouse ANC propaganda. The publication also prints lies and political opinions attributed to no one, though clearly expressing an ANC perspective. Yet amazingly, the IEC has used this as a vehicle to communicate to voters.

The so-called “voter guide” is far from neutral in its pronouncements. It has the MEC lauding the Freedom Charter celebrations. It has the MEC claiming the local government system in the province is one in which the confidence of the people had been completely eroded until the ANC took over. It has the MEC claiming that until the ANC took over, local communities were largely excluded from decision making. It presents a full-page story on the KZN Traditional Leadership Act which not only reflects a straight ANC perspective, but which also presents lies as fact. It states eg, that the bill was accepted by the biggest sections of amakhosi in the province when the biggest section of amakhosi – represented by the House of Traditional Leaders in the province - in fact rejected the bill. And to rub salt into the wound, every page of the guide has a photo of Mike Mabuyakhulu on it. We need to know why there are 60 pages of voting stations and the IEC’s lists of candidates of all parties in all the municipalities with photos of Mike Mabuyakhulu to accompany them. In fact, there are 80 photographs of this ANC leader but only one of the IEC’s provincial electoral officer.

The IFP regards all this as ANC advertising. Whether the ANC paid for this free election publicity or whether the government of KZN did so or whether Independent Newspapers was simply doing its bit for its pals is one issue.

But most important, we want to know why the IEC, the so-called “independent” electoral commission, has collaborated in this venture and what this suggests to non-ANC voters. In fact, it suggests to the IFP that the IEC is in agreement with the views expressed, and that in guiding voters, this “voter guide” is implicitly guiding voters away from the IFP and towards the ANC.

We call on the Chairperson of the IEC, Dr Brigalia Bam, to immediately investigate this scandal and take strict action to remedy the image it has created for itself as partner to the ruling party. It should also likewise apologise to the voters of KZN for its actions.