ActionSA takes My Vote Counts to court over political party funding litigation

ActionSA has announced it is heading to court to oppose the litigation launched by My Vote Counts, which, among other things, seeks to remove any disclosure limit for donations received by political parties.

The party says while it does not completely disagree with elements of the litigation, it believes the papers filed by the organisation seek to reduce the extent to which emerging parties are funded by donations from South Africans.

ActionSA national chairperson Michael Beaumont accused My Vote Counts (MVC) of seeking to remove any disclosure limit for donations received by parties.

“The papers filed by MVC will serve to entrench a system of political incumbency in South Africa through deterring private fundraising — the only mechanism through which new parties can compete with established political parties who continue to receive their share of R1.3bn in state funding each year,” he said.

Beaumont stated that his party was arguably the most compliant party in respect of the Political Party Funding Act (PPFA) and it will continue to disclose donations and get clean audit outcomes. 

“The real-world experience of law-abiding parties like ActionSA is that South Africans who donate to our party do so from a love of their country and a desire to see change, with many recognising ActionSA as the vehicle essential to the project of change,” he said.

Beaumont said they have exhausted engagements with the organisation on elements of its litigation and its negative impact, but My Vote Counts failed to respond to these requests consistent with the manner it served papers on parties only represented in the National Assembly.

“It appears that MVC is either ignorant or unfazed about the effect of their litigation on new emerging political parties which are proving vital to a democracy increasingly disinterested in the offerings of the political establishment.”

He said many donors opted to donate below the R100,000 disclosure limit out of a “justifiable” fear of experiencing reprisal from the ANC or DA.

“Removing this disclosure threshold will dissuade many from contributing to new emerging parties like ActionSA and leave such parties to compete with established parties who, despite being in decline as South Africans reject them, continue to award themselves a fortune in taxpayer funding.”

The move to remove disclosure limits would also throttle crowdfunding initiatives by requiring the collection of multiple data points on every donor, even with micro-donations that could not reasonably be considered a threat to buying influence, he said.

“ActionSA is not opposed to the principles of transparency behind disclosing party funding. As a party, we have led the way in compliance while all other major parties in South Africa have serious allegations or findings against their compliance.”

Had the organisation accepted the meeting with ActionSA, it would have found an ally in the party to help enforce compliance, Beaumont said. Instead, the party proposed that the IEC establish a compliance unit to investigate allegations of non-compliance and that the electoral court be mandated to hear cases.

“Parties should submit stamped bank statements on a quarterly basis and party expense audits assess whether lavish election campaigns can plausibly be funded on the income being disclosed by parties.”

South Africans could not be disenfranchised any further by an unelected non-profit “clumsily litigating” to defund emerging political parties, he said.

“Despite the myriad reasons to vote, 26-million South Africans of voting age have opted out of voting precisely because established parties offer little inspiration for change. To reinforce incumbency and further reduce the prospects of emerging parties offering much-needed new choices is an assault on the democracy My Vote Counts purports to fight for.” 

ActionSA remained open to engaging with MVC, he added.

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