Conflict at Buccleuch voting station
BUCCLEUCH - Though voting for the by-elections have gone smoothly, there was a conflict between ANC and DA members at the Buccleuch Primary School voting station.
Presiding IEC officer, Fenky Mofiwa, said that ANC members expressed outrage towards DA members who were conversing with voters outside the gates of the voting hall at 9am.
ANC member Steve Tshwete said, “What the DA did was disturb voters when they came in, and the law is very clear that no one is allowed to disturb the flow of voters, it’s intimidation. They’ve also used the art of greeting people and conversing.”
Mofiwa said that after the ANC had lodged a complaint against the opposing party, he set a barrier dividing Beatty Street in front of Buccleuch Primary School to prevent either party from interacting with voters in front of the station entrance. He added that after the barrier was set up the conflict subsided.
Chairman for the West Rand region of the DA, Roy Harris said, “The presiding officer has the right to change the set-up because you cannot impede the entrance. So I went to speak to him. Both the ANC and the DA were taken away from the entrance.”
Mofiwa said that the flow of voters had been much smoother after the commotion had subsided, with the DA setting up greeters on each end of Beatty Street.
