Knoesen v Chief Electoral Officer

• Jurisdiction: South Africa
• Judge: Galgut J
• Judgment Date: 25 April 1960
• Court: Transvaal Provincial Division
• Hearing Date: 07 April 1960
• Citation: 1960 (3) SA 12a (T)

Galgut, J.:

This is a case stated by the Chief Electoral Officer in terms of sec. 24 (1) of the Electoral Consolidation Act, 46 of 1946, as amended.

C A voter, acting in terms of sec. 22 of the said Act, lodged an objection with an electoral officer to the registration as voters of two students in the Sunnyside, Pretoria, division. That objection was overruled, and the voter then appealed to the Chief Electoral Officer. That appeal was dismissed, and the request for the stated case was then made.

D The two voters are a young man and a young woman who, at the date of their application for registration as voters, were not yet 19 years of age but were over 18 years. Both are students as the Normal College, Pretoria, and live in hostels provided by the College authorities.

When the Chief Electoral Officer stated the case all that there was E before me were the application forms lodged, the objections and the ruling of the Chief Electoral Officer. The application forms set out the names of the applicants and their dates of birth. In the case of Constance Alexander, she stated that she was living in the Harmonie Hostel, Normal College, Pretoria, and gave her previous address. The previous address is obviously the home of her parents in Blairgowrie, Johannesburg.

F The objection in her case reads:

'that there has been no permanent change in the place of residence of the voter and that the voter has, therefore, not qualified to be registered in Pretoria, Sunnyside.'

The ruling given by the Chief Electoral Officer reads:

'I disallowed the said appeal for the following reason: that on the G evidence before me it appeared that the applicant is qualified by residence for registration as a voter in the Pretoria, Sunnyside, Electoral Division.'

In the case of Richard Allingham he, in his application, set out that he was living in the Verkenner Hostel, Normal College, Pretoria, and he gave his previous address which is obviously the home of his parents. The objection in his case reads:

H 'that the address given is not the permanent address of the voter and the voter is, therefore, not qualified by residence to be registered as a voter in Sunnyside.'

The ruling by the Chief Electoral Officer reads the same in this case as in Alexander's case.

As will be seen later the objections did not set out the exact nature of the objections. No point was made of this at the hearing before me. This was probably due to the fact that the objections had set out the

Galgut J

intention of the objector, and it was realised that they were drawn by a layman.

In my view there was not sufficient information before me to enable me to form any opinion, and I therefore asked for additional information. A The questions put by me were aimed at ascertaining the length of each term, each vacation, the security of tenure of rooms by students in the hostels and whether or not the students returned home during their vacation.

The replies to these questions indicate that both students are university students living in a university hostel. Allingham occupies a B single room, but Alexander shares her room. These rooms are provided by the university authorities. Fees for their occupation are payable yearly, but they are expected quarterly in advance. No guarantee is given that the same accommodation will be given to any particular student each term, but every effort is made to ensure that the student remains in the same room for at least each year of his course of study. C The rooms are usually occupied only during term time, but special arrangements can be made in terms of which the student will probably be allowed to remain in occupation during the vacation.

For the yearly payment made the student occupies the accommodation for D four terms. A study of the periods placed before me shows that the first three terms occupy seven months and the last term 42 days. During vacations the keys are usually surrendered to the university authorities. Study hours are fixed by the house committee. The house committee is elected by the students. The conduct of a committee and its constitution is subject to the approval of the council of the college. E Male students can receive male visitors in their rooms at all hours, but male visitors from outside must announce themselves to the residential staff and can obtain permission during reasonable hours to visit the rooms of male students. As far as female students are concerned visits of members of the opposite sex are curtailed in the F bedrooms but they may receive visitors in the sitting-room at reasonable hours. Parents and near relatives of students are not refused permission to visit them. The hostels are conducted in a normal way. The control exercised is the normal control exercised in any university hostel.

It is clear that each of the first three terms is for a period of more than two months, and in both cases the students had been living in the G hostels for more than two months before their first Easter vacation. They had probably gone home for that vacation, which was from 25th March to 7th April, 1959. Thereafter they returned to their accommodation at the hostels, and submitted their applications on the 14th May and 28th April, 1959, respectively. It is common cause that both students are attending courses of not less than two years' duration.

H It is convenient at this stage to set out the relevant sections of the Electoral Consolidation Act.

Sec. 13 (1) reads:

'Subject to the provisions of sub-secs. (2), (3) and (4), no person shall be registered in any division - (a) unless he actually resided in that division for a continuous period of at least two months immediately preceding the date of completion of his application; or (b) if he did not so reside, unless he retained his home in that division for such a period.'

The effect of sec. 14 (1) (a) is that if the electoral officer is satisfied

Galgut J

that the applicant is qualified by residence for registration he must (unless the voter is for other reasons disqualified) include the applicant's name in the voters' list for the division for which he has been appointed.

The relevant portions of sec. 16 (1) and (3) read:

A '(1) Whenever there has been a permanent change in the place of residence, home, place of business, office or branch business with reference to which a voter who has been registered in any division became qualified by residence, he may, on the expiry of two months thereafter, notify the electoral officer for the area in which that division is situate, of the change.

(3) On receipt of any such notification the electoral officer shall, if he is satisfied that there has been a permanent change as described in sub-sec. (1), and that the voter would, if his name is removed from the B voters' list, not be qualified...