Video-opname in berig.
KWAZULU-NATAL. – Bejaarde inwoners van ’n versorgingsoord in Amanzimtoti moes Woensdag in hul rolstoele na ’n stemlokaal geneem word nadat hulle na bewering nie tydens die spesiale stemproses kon stem nie.
The Elders Voice KZN sê die organisasie het vooraf reëlings met die Onafhanklike Verkiesingskommissie (OVK) getref vir inwoners by drie versorgingsoorde in Pennington, Umbilo en Amanzimtoti om spesiale stemme uit te bring. Volgens die organisasie kon inwoners by Pennington en Umbilo Maandag stem toe OVK-amptenare die fasiliteite besoek het, maar dieselfde het nie by Amanzimtoti gebeur nie. Die organisasie het uiteindelik die inwoners wat nie self na ’n stemlokaal kon beweeg nie, in hul rolstoele daarheen geneem sodat hulle hul stemreg kon uitoefen.
Lees die volledige plasing van die versorgingsoord in Engels hier onder:
EVERY VOTE SHOULD COUNT… OR DOES IT?
I think some serious questions need to be asked about the special voting process, particularly when it comes to our elderly residents. At The Elders Voice KZN, we made arrangements for our residents at Pennington, Umbilo and Amanzimtoti to be registered for special votes. All three homes followed exactly the same process, with the IEC visiting our facilities.
On Monday, the IEC visited Pennington and Umbilo, and our residents were able to cast their votes. However, when it came to Amanzimtoti, things took a very different turn. When we questioned our DA Ward Councillor, Mr Andre Beetge, we were told that it was a two-step process and that residents were also supposed to register themselves for special votes.
Now, excuse me, but that raises a few questions. Why did the IEC visit our homes in the first place if residents still had to complete another registration process themselves? Why was one of our Amanzimtoti residents actually listed on the special voters’ roll and able to follow exactly the same process as everyone else, yet the remaining residents were unable to vote?
On Tuesday, I went to the voting station and, at the request of the IEC officials, contacted Mr Beetge. I placed him on speakerphone so that the IEC could explain the situation and establish whether anything could be done to assist our Amanzimtoti residents. His response was that there was nothing he could do. He described the entire process as a mess, said many people had not been registered and that it was what it was. If residents did not make their way to the voting station themselves on Wednesday, then they simply would not vote.
Really?
This is South Africa. A country where we are constantly reminded that every vote counts, that democracy is something we fought for, and that every citizen has a voice. Yet here we were, with elderly residents who had been through the registration process at their own homes, now potentially being denied the opportunity to exercise that very right.
It certainly doesn’t give one much confidence in the system, and equally, it leaves us questioning the level of assistance and accountability we can expect from our own ward councillor when problems arise.
But here’s the thing. Our residents are elderly. Some are frail, some are wheelchair-bound, and some cannot simply jump into a car and make their way to a voting station. However, they still understand their responsibility as citizens. They still believe their voices matter. They still believe they have a duty to vote. So, out of principle, we put our residents into their wheelchairs and physically wheeled them from the home to the voting station. Because we refuse to tell an elderly person that their voice doesn’t matter.
We have spent years advocating for the rights, dignity and recognition of older people. They may be elderly, they may be frail, and they may need assistance with everyday activities, but they have not lost their citizenship, their opinions or their right to participate in democracy. And perhaps that is the biggest lesson here. Democracy should not depend on how mobile you are, how well you understand complicated registration procedures, or whether someone is prepared to help you when things go wrong.
Our elderly residents have earned the right to be heard. They deserve better than being told, “It is what it is.” Every vote should count. Every voice should matter. And that includes the voices of our elderly.
The Elders Voice KZN — We will always make our voices heard.
Nuusflits het Beetge en die OVK vir kommentaar gevra.
