AS I was leaving the premises of the polling station at KWV in Paarl South on Election Day, ID members asked me to highlight my name on a copy of the voter’s roll.
I asked them why I was required to do this as IEC personnel had already crossed out my name inside the immediate voting area.
They could not give me a satisfactory answer. I then asked them if they were IEC personnel. They claimed to be, but could not produce any proof (except for a sheet of paper with IEC scrawled at the top).
I asked a DA representative if what they were asking us to do was necessary (even though the ID members were insisting it was). He said it was not.
The ID was also asking voters to find their own names on the list. That’s fine if you’re an honest citizen, but what if you aren’t? They did not ask to see my identification.
Naturally I refused to succumb to what I can only describe as intimidation tactics. I am not an ID supporter to begin with and I gained the impression they were being evasive and deceptive.
I would still like to know why, if voters were not required to do anything more after they had cast their ballots, the ID insisted that we highlight our names on their copy of the voter’s roll?
I would very much like an explanation from the ID and the IEC!Cara Saayman
