My Vote Counts NPC v Speaker of the National Assembly and Others

My Vote Counts NPC, a non-profit organisation advocating for transparency in South Africa’s political system, approached the Constitutional Court directly. It alleged that Parliament had failed to fulfil a constitutional obligation under section 32(2) of the Constitution by not enacting legislation requiring disclosure of private funding of political parties. The applicant argued that information about private political party funding is required for the meaningful exercise of the right to vote in section 19(3) of the Constitution. Parliament opposed the application, contending that it had already fulfilled its section 32(2) obligation by enacting the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (PAIA), and that any access to such information must be sought through PAIA.

The application was dismissed.

The case affirms the principle of constitutional subsidiarity in South African constitutional law, confirming that where legislation has been enacted to give effect to a constitutional right, litigants must rely on that legislation rather than directly on the Constitution. It clarified that PAIA is the primary mechanism for accessing information, including information held by political parties, and limited direct constitutional challenges alleging legislative failure where an enabling statute exists.