Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni has dismissed the DA’s request to Western countries to monitor South Africa’s general elections later this year.

Briefing journalists about the outcomes of Wednesday’s cabinet meeting, Ntshavheni said the matter was not discussed.

“There is no point in discussing a letter that is inconsequential. We are confident of our electoral system,” she said responding to questions.

Inviting countries that themselves had “questionable electoral processes” to monitor this country’s elections was tantamount to undermining South Africa’s sovereignty.

“There was no reason to discuss the letter because we will not allow the undermining of the sovereignty of South Africa,” she said.

“To invite countries who do not have themselves a participatory democracy at the level that we participate, to have countries that do not have observer participation mechanisms and to have countries that are already denying their own citizens the right to vote, [as] you know there are states in the US that have curtailed rights to vote for certain people, to come observe and play big brother in South Africa, it will not happen,” said Ntshavheni.

She reiterated South Africa was a sovereign republic with its own rules and observer mechanisms.

“This democracy has stood the test of time because we have the Electoral Commission of South Africa [IEC] that has shown its independence, resilience and astuteness.

“We have been leading the world in making sure we deliver free and fair elections. There has not been intimidation or violations of people’s rights to vote,” she said.

It emerged at the weekend that the DA has written to US secretary of state Antony Blinken and 13 other foreign ministers requesting support for local efforts to safeguard the credibility of the elections if the government does not grant international observers permission to monitor them.

The letter was sent to the foreign ministers of countries including France, Germany, Canada, Italy, Japan, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland and the EU.

The move was slammed by the ANC which said it amounted to mortgaging the country.

The letter was written by the DA’s shadow minister of international relations Emma Powell, who told Blinken and his counterparts the ANC was forming alliances with tyrannical regimes and would do everything to cling to power. It was asking the West to make available modern technologies and other resources to monitor the elections.

“Here, we are witnessing an increasing willingness by the ANC to forge alliances with malign international actors whose regimes are characterised by tyranny, terror and oppression. We therefore appeal to your government to recognise the high stakes for South Africa in the lead-up to and aftermath of the national and provincial elections.

“In this context we formally request our partners in democracy to engage with consequence in the run-up to the election,” wrote Powell.

News24 quoted David Feldmann, the spokesperson for the US embassy in Pretoria, expressing confidence in the how the IEC runs South African elections.

“The IEC has a long-standing and excellent reputation for conducting free and fair elections.”

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