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MOGOENG CJ must the information be “held” in one form or another, it must also be reasonably accessible to potential voters. They need it to be able to make a quality decision to vote for a particular political party or independent candidate. [35] For, there is a vital connection between a proper exercise of the right to vote and the right of access to information. The former is not to be exercised blindly or without proper reflection. In this regard, Ngcobo CJ made the following observations: “In a democratic society such as our own, the effective exercise of the right to vote also depends on the right of access to information. For without access to information, the ability of citizens to make responsible political decisions and participate meaningfully in public life is undermined.”29 [36] Public office is so important that it is only to be ascended to by those who have been properly examined and found worthy to represent the electorate. And that may only be so with the benefit of information. Without it, “the ability of citizens to make responsible political decisions and participate meaningfully in public life is undermined”. [37] By its very nature, the proper exercise of the right to vote is largely dependent on information. No wonder it takes months, at times even a year or more, for political parties and independent candidates to wage a campaign for public office. This entails imparting whatever information they consider necessary for the electorate to know more about them. That information-sharing process takes the form of many house-tohouse visits, town-hall and stadia meetings, radio and television interviews and newspaper articles. Billboards and advertisements are routinely used for the same purpose. There is wide coverage of electoral campaigns on all media platforms and they are fundamentally about sharing information so that the electorate know more about those public office-seekers. 29 President of the Republic of South Africa v M & G Media Limited [2011] ZACC 32; 2012 (2) SA 50 (CC); 2012 (2) BCLR 181 (CC) at para 10. 15

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My Vote Counts NPC v. Minister of Justice and Correctional Services

Judgment

Question Presented: Is the current Promotion of Access to Information Act unconstitutional?

Alleged Acts: The petitioner challenged the validity of the Promotion to Access to Information Act alleging it failed to properly provide access to information on private funding, rendering it inconsistent with the Constitution.

Procedural history: The petitioner brought an application to the Western Cape Division of the High Court, Cape Town challenging the constitutionality of the PAIA. The High Court held PAIA to be unconstitutional, yet did not order for a "continuous and systematic" disclosure of information, which the petitioner specifically appealed. The Constitutional Court affirmed the High Court's ruling.

Summary: The Court declared that the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (PAIA) is invalid to the extent of its inconsistency with the Constitution by failing to provide for the record, preservation, and reasonable disclosure of information on the private funding of political parties and independent candidates. The Court stated that the information on private funding of political parties and independent candidates is essential for the effective exercise of the right to make political choices and to participate in the election, and declared that information on private funding of political parties and independent candidates must be recorded, preserved and made reasonably accessible as a fundamental principle. The court linked the constitutional right of access to information for every citizen to the right to vote, therefore creating an obligation to effectively record and disclose information on private funding during a campaign.

Conclusion: The Court declared that the Parliament must amend the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (PAIA) and take any other measure it deems appropriate to provide for the recording, preservation, and facilitation of reasonable access to information on the private funding of political parties and independent candidates within a period of 18 months.

Legal Issue(s)

Campaign Finance

Applicable Law(s): Constitution; Promotion of Access to Information Act 2

Region: Africa

Country: South Africa

Language of Decision

English

Court: Constitutional Court

Election Type: Review of law

Date of decision: Jun 21, 2018

Geolocation

Latitude: -33.87375177

Longitude: 18.6816943

: Geolocation

Primary Documents

South Africa Constitutional Court 2018.pdf
English
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Election Judgments - IFES

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My Vote Counts NPC v. Minister of Justice and Correctional Services

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