20 May 2025: Parliament, Good Hope Chamber, Cape Town

Honourable House Chairperson
Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs
Honourable Members,

Today Chairperson we make further strides in our Journey towards creating a just democratic and prosperous society by Deeping Democracy. The Report of the Home Affairs Portfolio Committee is of paramount importance as it relates to the promotion of our constitutional democracy and the very sacred principles of transparency, ethical leadership and accountability to the electorate that we hold dear.

This Plenary, on party funding limits and thresholds for donations to political parties, is yet another demonstration of our commitment to finalising this matter on behalf of the people of the Republic. Nobody has anything to gain from any situation where there would be no regulations governing limits of political party funding and disclosures.

The Committee’s Report builds on strides made thus far, particularly by the Home Affairs Portfolio Committee since the Minister of Home Affairs introduced the Electoral Matters Amendment Bill, In the year 2023.

These developments partially originate from the Constitutional Court Judgement of 2019. We all should recall that, in the case in point, the Constitutional Court declared that the Electoral Act No. 73 of 1998 was unconstitutional “to the extent that it allows individuals to be elected to the National Assembly and Provincial Legislatures only through membership of political parties”.

As stated in the Report under consideration, the Portfolio Committee processed, diligently, the Electoral Amendment Bill of 2023 to allow adult citizens to contest the National and Provincial elections – the first bite of which was successfully tested in the last general elections. In the 2024 General Elections, we witnessed, in our lifetime, the realisation of our forebears’ declaration that “The People Shall Govern!” Independents for the first time under the 6th parliament of the democratic dispensation, were given an opportunity to participate in deepening democracy as individuals not under political parties only bringing our commitment of deepening democracy to reality.

In this manner, we ensured that every man and woman of our country, irrespective of race, colour or sex, enjoys and exercises the right to vote for and to stand as a candidate for all bodies which make laws. We did this building from spirit of the Freedom Charter of 1955. The Department, together with the IEC, submitted the Electoral Amendment Bill as well as the Electoral Matters Amendment Bill into Parliament. The Department further assisted the Portfolio Committee to process the two Bills until finalization thereof. As it relates to the development of the Report, before Plenary, both the Department and IEC provided policy guidelines in setting the upper limits, as well as the disclosure threshold.

The IEC, together with the Department, will, following the Parliamentary resolution, also assist the President in the drafting of the required regulations as mandated by the Electoral Act and the Political Funding Act.

At this point, allow me to convey my deepest gratitude and appreciation to the Chairperson and all Members of the Home Affairs Portfolio Committee for their sterling work and unsurpassed dedication to this process.

We support the Committee’s report, unconditionally, believing that it will also receive unwavering support in this this August House in light of the meticulous work the Committee and various parties put in for it to see the light of day, sparing neither strength nor courage. It is worth appreciating that South Africa is not the first country to embark on this journey however, whilst our approach is mindful of global practices and standards, we are also mindful of our own situation.

The global community continues to create checks and balances in creating more state dependency on the fiscus which reduces risk of foreign funding which places our democracy at perils of foreign influences. Many countries have embarked on a similar legislative approach in creating fixed monetary limits and in some percentage-based limits.

I trust that today’s deliberations will indeed bring us closer to presenting to the President of the Republic, a resolution, on which to apply his mind, on this vexed matter of the Political Funding Act on the upper limit and disclosure of donations to political parties, independent candidates and independent representatives.

I am alive to the reality that the Electoral Reform Panel is finalising its report on South Africa’s electoral system for consideration by Parliament. Their recommendations may have an effect even on the party funding legislative landscape.

The resolution provided by the Portfolio Committee to the National Assembly is informed, among other things, by public consultations and hearings the Committee conducted with several parties, and a further study by the Parliament Budget Office in December 2024-February 2025.

The proposals brought before parliament today , in terms of section 24 of the Act, sates that the National Assembly should resolve that the President as soon as reasonably possible, makes regulations regarding the amounts contemplated in section 8(2) and 9(1)(a) of the Electoral Act in accordance with the process set out in that Act, and recommends that the President in that regard considers the following amounts determined by the Assembly, following a public participation process, as appropriate:

(i) the amount referred to in section 8(2) (upper limit of donations) being thirty million rand in a financial year; and
(ii) the amount referred to in section 9(1)(a) (disclosure limit) of the Electoral Act being two hundred thousand rand in a financial year.

Our engagements on this matter was largely informed by extensive community engagements and worlds best practise, this will advance our cause by balancing between stifling the funding for purposes of creating a vibrant democracy and the need for transparency and accountability.

Section 24(1)(a) of the Political Funding Act states that the President, acting on a resolution of the National Assembly, may, by proclamation in a Gazette, make regulations in respect of, amongst others:

a) the maximum amount of a donation that may be accepted from a person or entity, within
a financial year as contemplated in section 8(2); and
b) the threshold amount which all donations received must be disclosed as contemplated in section 9(1)(a) of the Electoral Act.

House Chairperson although the High Court in the above matter provided a read-in as temporary relief to address a lacuna in the law, in respect of section 8(2) and 9(1)(a) of the Electoral Act, respectively, the High Court expressed its expectation that, “Parliament would attend to the matter, on behalf of the people of the Republic, in a robust and urgent manner such a matter deserves”.

House Chairperson there is an inherent tension between the democratic principles of openness, transparency and the right to information, and the risks associated with donors’ right to privacy.

In addressing this matter moving forward we must consider that, our actions must at all times be based on the constitutional imperatives which at their core, are the principles of accountability, transparency, deepening democracy, the promotion of national interest and protecting the sovereignty of the State. The Constitution makes great provision for funding to be made available for the promotion of democracy from the fiscus.

Chairperson we support the report.

I Thank You