BUFFALO CITY, Monday 28 September 2026 — The Electoral Commission is examining a United Democratic Movement complaint alleging that municipal employment opportunities are being used to influence political support in Buffalo City ahead of the 4 November local government elections.
UDM president Bantu Holomisa referred the allegations to IEC chief electoral officer Sy Mamabolo, while the party has separately approached Buffalo City council speaker Humphrey Maxegwana and Eastern Cape Co-operative Governance MEC Zolile Williams over the municipality’s Expanded Public Works Programme.
Mamabolo confirmed that the commission had received the complaint and was looking into the allegations.
The complaint centres on allegations that residents in Ward 1 in Duncan Village and Ward 40 in Qonce were promised EPWP employment in circumstances the UDM says could amount to the use of municipal resources for electoral advantage.
The ANC had not responded to the allegations by the time the latest detailed report was published.
UDM asks IEC to investigate alleged vote buying
The UDM has asked the IEC to investigate allegations of vote buying, voter intimidation and possible misuse of EPWP employment opportunities.
Deputy party president and Buffalo City mayoral candidate Nqabayomzi Kwankwa said the party formally approached both the IEC and the municipality after receiving allegations of political interference in recruitment in at least two wards.
The party alleges that ANC activists promised residents employment, provided application forms and gave assurances that they would receive EPWP positions in exchange for political support.
Those claims have not been established as fact.
Holomisa said the proximity of the allegations to the municipal election required electoral authorities and the municipality to establish whether publicly funded employment programmes were being used for partisan purposes.
Buffalo City asked to disclose EPWP records
The UDM is also seeking disclosure of municipal records relating to the programme.
It wants Buffalo City to provide EPWP budgets, allocations, beneficiary records and payment information, as well as details explaining how participants were recruited and selected.
The party has asked for council oversight of the programme in wards 1 and 40 and an investigation into whether municipal officials, political office-bearers or other individuals improperly influenced the allocation of employment opportunities.
Buffalo City spokesperson Luzuko Buku told the Daily Dispatch that the municipality had not yet received Holomisa’s latest letter by Sunday.
The council speaker and ANC had also not responded to the newspaper before publication.
Similar allegations surfaced before June by-elections
The latest complaint follows previous disputes over Buffalo City’s EPWP programme.
Holomisa said residents were allegedly offered employment opportunities during campaigning around a June by-election in Ward 1.
DA caucus leader Sue Bentley separately alleged at the time that hundreds of young people had been recruited through the programme in wards where by-elections were taking place.
The African Transformation Movement raised similar allegations last week.
ATM spokesperson Zama Ntshona said some party volunteers had been offered municipal employment after being encouraged to abandon the ATM and support the ANC.
The ATM asked the Buffalo City council speaker to investigate the allegations.
The claims by the UDM, DA and ATM remain allegations and have not resulted in a finding that the ANC or municipal officials used the EPWP programme to influence votes.
Municipality previously ordered review of programme
Buffalo City had already initiated a review affecting part of its EPWP operations before the latest election complaint.
A municipal directive issued in August ordered EPWP activities, contracts and participant deployments affected by the review to cease by the end of that month pending approval and compliance processes.
Municipal general manager Qaphela Mpotulo said the review was intended to examine existing projects, participant deployment, contractual arrangements and compliance with applicable legislation and municipal policies.
Buffalo City previously rejected allegations that EPWP opportunities were allocated according to political considerations.
The municipality said in August that a leaked directive concerning the programme related to an environmental compliance component within the sport, recreation and community development directorate rather than the entire city-wide EPWP programme.
It said the programme created 4,934 work opportunities during the 2025/26 financial year against a target of 3,370.
Employment programme becomes election issue
The dispute is politically significant because the allegations concern the potential use of publicly funded employment opportunities during an election campaign.
EPWP positions are temporary work opportunities funded through government programmes and administered through participating public bodies, including municipalities.
Buffalo City is one of South Africa’s eight metropolitan municipalities and is among the closely contested councils heading into the November election.
The ANC won an outright majority in the metro in 2021, but the 2026 contest includes 29 political parties.
The UDM is contesting the metro with Kwankwa as its mayoral candidate, although its campaign has separately been affected by a dispute over ward candidates omitted from the IEC’s certified candidate list.
Kwankwa is currently the UDM’s sole candidate appearing on the certified Buffalo City proportional representation list, while the party is pursuing legal remedies over its excluded ward candidates.
IEC scrutiny adds electoral dimension
The IEC’s involvement distinguishes the latest complaint from earlier political demands for an internal municipal investigation.
The commission is responsible for administering the election and enforcing provisions governing electoral conduct.
Its examination will determine whether the information supplied by the UDM warrants further action under the electoral framework.
Separately, Buffalo City will have to respond to demands for information about how EPWP beneficiaries were selected and whether its existing review identified problems with the programme’s administration.
No finding has been made against the ANC, Buffalo City officials or any individual named in the allegations.
The next significant developments will be the IEC’s response to the UDM complaint and any findings arising from the municipality’s review of the employment programme ahead of voting on 4 November.
