The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) in the Buffalo City Metro in the Eastern Cape has objected to a coin toss by the IEC concerning Ward 15. The party is demanding a recount of the votes in the ward.
A coin toss happens when there is a tie in numbers, where, in this instance, it is the EFF and the DA.
The process has since been temporarily suspended.
The EFF’s Mziyanda Hlekiso says, “Can you please stop this toss thing? And go and recount the ballots because this one is not going to help us. It’s the last thing, this thing of toss. Let’s go and recount, and then we will take it from there. We can recount the spoilt ballot papers; we are still fine. The toss is the last thing.”
Meanwhile, the EFF says it will not enter coalition governments in the Free State simply for the sake of power.
The party says any potential coalition agreement must guarantee that its policies are implemented, particularly on fighting tender corruption and strengthening state capacity.
EFF Free State representative Mapheule Liphoko says the party is considering its options in hung municipalities, which include joining other parties in government or serving on opposition benches.
He says the EFF accepts the voters’ mandate despite a slight decline in its electoral support.
“There are multiple municipalities that are hung in the Free State. That being said, it would mean that we’ll have to consider each municipality and make a choice. Either we go into opposition benches, or we form government with whoever would like to form government with us,” says Liphoko.
“And that would be a person who would accept our policies, avoid tenderisation of the state, and capacitate the state, but equally do not want to make Mangaung look like, or become an epitome of Cape Town, where Langa is not serviced; only the bigger town of Cape Town is serviced. But that being said, we’ll have to go back to the drawing board and observe where our mistakes were,” he adds.