Mahé, Seychelles, 18 June 2019 – A new political party headed by Seychelles’ former tourism minister, Alain St Ange presented documents for ‘One Seychelles’ to be registered with the Electoral Commission.
According to the Seychelles News Agency, the chairperson of the Commission, Danny Lucas, told reporters at a media briefing on Wednesday 12 June that they will have to go over the documents and certify them.
“If we find that all is in order, we will give a date to formally register the party. But if some documents are not in order, we will contact the party leader to see if they can be put into order according to the requirements needed to register a political party,” said Lucas.
He added that usually, the Commission has within one month to give a date to register any political party. For the party to be registered, documents such as the logo, colour of the party, a manifesto, and at least 100 signatures from eligible voters endorsing the party need to be in order.
The Electoral Commission of Seychelles is the body that organises, oversees and regulates political elections in the island nation. It is also in charge of registering political parties in Seychelles, a group of 115 islands in the western Indian Ocean. To date, there are 11 registered political parties, according to the Electoral Commission.
“Today is an important moment for Seychelles as a new political party has handed over its necessary documents to the Electoral Commission. As a group of people, we have taken article 23 of our Constitution that gives the right to every Seychellois to be affiliated with any political party. We want to give a choice to every Seychellois,” said St Ange.
Alain St.Ange is the current President of the African Tourism Board and a past recipient of the Tourism Eminent Achiever Award in Africa. He owns Saint Ange Consultancy and publishes a regular series of Seychelles Tourism newsletters.
St.Ange was also a candidate for the hotly debated 2018 UNWTO Secretary-General Election Fiasco before the Seychelles Cabinet, under the then President Danie Faure, withdrew his candidature at the last minute.
In the official launching of the party in April, St Ange said that ‘One Seychelles’ has a five-point action plan which focuses on reviving the island’s economy, create job opportunities, and transform the lives of the people.
Presidential and legislative elections in Seychelles are held every five years with the next presidential election due in 2020. The last presidential election was held in December 2015 and the candidate of the ruling ‘Parti Lepep’ — James Michel — won with 50.15 per cent of the vote.
