President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed Mosotho Simon Moepya as the new Chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) of South Africa with effect from 15 October 2022.
“Mr Moepya has extensive knowledge and experience of the powers and functions of the Electoral Commission,” reads the Presidency’s statement.
“He has served as a full-time member of the Electoral Commission since 2018 after holding various senior positions in the Commission since 1998.”
Moepya will be succeeding Glen Mashinini, who term came to an end in April.
The appointment of Moepya has been made in terms of Section 8 (1) of the Electoral Commission Act, 1996.
Mashinini’s reappointment as commissioner was opposed by several opposition parties, including the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), with the former blaming Mashinini for the problems which were experienced during last year’s municipal elections.
He was appointed as commissioner in April 2015 and in September that year, former president Jacob Zuma appointed him as the chairperson.
In February this year, the Office of the Chief Justice called for nominations to fill the vacancy.
The Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs’ appointment process eventually concluded in May, with Mashinini recommended to serve another term as commissioner.
Before Moepya was elected to the commission, he started working at the IEC in 1998, holding various positions, including director for electoral logistics, senior manager for electoral logistics, planning and infrastructure, deputy chief electoral officer and chief electoral officer, according to his biography on the IEC’s website.
He holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree and other commercial degrees.
Source: News24, The Citizen, Times Live, IOL, image from Twitter: @lunietoolz