Biggest Political Donors Revealed for Elections: Motsepe, Oppenheimers, Moshal Key Contributors

• The Electoral Commission (IEC) says more than R170 million has been donated to political parties under the Political Party Funding Act
• According to the IEC, this marks the first time such an amount has been raised in a single quarter
• Business magnates Patrice Motsepe, the Oppenheimers and Martin Moshal are seen as the key contributors funding various parties

Trisha Pillay is a Briefly News current affairs journalist in Johannesburg. With degrees in Journalism and International Politics, she delved into the intricacies of political landscapes at The Citizen newspaper, African News Network and Newzroom Afrika. Pillay has also completed a training course from Google News Initiative.

JOHANNESBURG - Political parties in South Africa are experiencing a surge in donations as they gear up for the upcoming General Election on 29 May 2024.

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IEC declares funding

The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) recently published a report detailing the declarations of donations, revealing a record-breaking total of R172 million received between 1 January and the end of March.

Since the implementation of the Party Funding Act, parties are required to disclose all donations exceeding R100,000.

Political donations

The Democratic Alliance (DA) stands out with over R65 million in declared donations, followed by Change Starts Now at R35.8 million, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) at R20 million, and the African National Congress (ANC) at R16.7 million. Rise Mzansi and ActionSA also made significant declarations at R15 million and R10.5 million respectively, with the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) reporting R2.6 million in donations.

This surge in funding surpasses the R100 million mark in a single quarter for the first time since the donation declarations became mandatory. According to EWN, mining companies associated with business magnate Patrice Motsepe emerged as prominent contributors during this period.

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Motsepe's contributions to various parties, including the ANC, DA, EFF and Freedom Front Plus, highlight the influence of key donors in shaping political landscapes.

Other major contributors include the Oppenheimer family, with significant donations to the DA and IFP, and Martin Moshal, the largest individual funder, supporting ActionSA and the DA. Media giant Naspers also made notable donations to the ANC and DA.

South Africans surprised

With the IEC name-dropping some of the biggest business people in the country, many are divided on who actually runs South Africa.

Here are some of the reactions:

@Lydia Filmalter shared:

"Well done, DA, I am proud of you."

@Phakisi Phakisi explained:

"Political Party Funding Act. Is the money from the government or from private sectors or individual donors?"

@Gentle Breeze Cielo asked:

"The question is, what are they doing with that money?? They're doing nothing."

@Sha said:

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"This is a reminder of who really runs our countries."

@Sem commented:

"Even donors don't believe in the ANC anymore."

Donations ANC, IFP EFF, IFP, DA received and their donors

In a related story, Briefly News reported about political parties raked in the randelas in the previous quarter, according to the IEC's latest Party Funding Disclosure Report.

Political parties, including the African National Congress, the Inkatha Freedom Party, the Democratic Alliance and others, received a stunning R172 million in funding.

South Africans were shocked by the donors' identities and discussed what this meant about who works behind the scenes of politics.

Source: Briefly News