Electoral Reform forum discusses draft recommendations |04 November 2017

Stakeholders happy that main  concerns have been addressed

Representatives of the different political parties as well as representatives of two local election observer groups -- Citizen Democracy Watch Seychelles (CDWS) and Association for Rights Information & Democracy (Arid), had another meeting yesterday to discuss a series of electoral reform recommendations put together by the Electoral Commission (EC).

The EC drafted the recommendations following several meetings held with the above mentioned forum.

EC chairman Hendrick Gappy said the commission has listened to views from forum members and other concerned stakeholders before drafting the series of electoral reform recommendations which was presented to members for discussions.

The members now have one week to discuss the draft recommendations with their respective party before getting back to the EC with any feedback after which the document will be submitted to the Cabinet, hopefully before the end of the year.

“The EC is happy it has done what it was expected to do, which is listen to all the different parties and other stakeholders had to say and compile the recommendations,” Mr Gappy said.

The executive summary of the draft document describes the electoral reform process and some of the recommendations as follows :

The Electoral Commission, mandated under Article 116 of the Constitution (6th Amendment) to undertake electoral reforms in Seychelles, started the process of consultation for the second phase of electoral reforms in March 2017. The main objective of the reform is to review the electoral legal framework in order to ensure the furtherance of democratic principles, effective representation and the creation of conditions that are conducive to fair electoral competition. 

In addition to direct consultation with political party and civil society representatives, the reform process also took into consideration the EC’s recommendations of 2013 ; the challenges faced during the first and second rounds of the 2015 Presidential election; the issues raised after the 2015 Presidential election; the 2016 National Assembly election as well as related court cases and judgments of the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal.

The main legal instruments reviewed are the Constitution of Seychelles, the Elections Act (1996) and the Political Parties Act (1991).

The EC further reiterates its proposal of 2013, to repeal Section 94 in Part V of the Elections Act and replacing it with a new Act for Campaign Financing.

Three amendments to the Constitution are proposed:

1.                    Article 114 (c) to bring it in line with the 2014 amendment of the Elections Act, section 5, subsection 3 (a) & (b), which enables Seychellois citizens residing overseas to register as voters and to vote in elections.

2.                    Article 116 (5) to avoid a repetition of the Perseverance issue where it became impossible for the district to be declared an electoral area prior to the 2016 National Assembly election.

3.                    A new schedule to be added to Article 170 to provide guidance on the transfer of power from one President to another.

The main changes proposed for the Elections Act include the separation of the roles of the Chairperson of the EC and the head of the EC secretariat; establishing a more accurate register of voters and providing electronic copies of registers on a regular basis; expediting the voting process through the use of alphabetical groupings; simplifying the nomination process for candidates; placing serial numbers on ballot paper stubs; ensuring the integrity of the voting process for voters needing assistance; improving the credibility of the ballot accounts and counting processes; and regulating the main manual of procedures and Codes of Conduct.   

Campaign financing which is covered under the current Elections Act continues to be a challenge. In line with good democratic practices the EC recommends the promulgation of a new Act for Campaign Financing, including the provision for setting limits on campaign financing, disclosure of sources of funding and disclosure of donations, monetary or in kind; and in the interest of good governance, transparency and credibility of the electoral process, for the accounts relating to campaign finance to be made public. Penalties are also proposed for non‐compliance.

The recommendations relating to the Political Parties Act aim to facilitate the process of political party registration, and enable the EC to carry out due diligence in the decision making process. It is also recommended, in line with the principle of good governance and transparency, to publish the applications for registration of political parties for comments or objections if any, as happens for the registration of voters.

A review of political party financing is also being proposed.

Meanwhile, the Linyon Demokratik Seselwa (LDS) has said in a communique after the meeting that it is satisfied that all the main issues of concern have been addressed.

“The details on which political parties have not agreed are on such issues as the amount of time that a citizen who is normally resident overseas has to be in the country before they can register, and the steps to remove a person from the register where the person is found to be not resident in Seychelles though a voters census,” says the LDS communiqué.

“LDS has accepted that on matters where there is no concensus among political parties, the Electoral Commission should make a sensible and impartial recommendation for legislation. Any legal amendments will need to go to the National Assembly for debate and enactment.

Apart from constitutional amendments, the reform measures will require substantial changes in the Elections Act and a new law to regulate campaign financing.

“There is also the task of drawing up all the rules and procedures for the whole electoral process to be included in a Handbook and covered in the law, so that there can be no deviations in practice.

“LDS hopes that the Electoral Commission will press ahead with this, and bring to a conclusion the exercise to establish a fair and transparent electoral process,” concludes the LDS communiqué.