All quiet on the Cape Flats
2011-05-18 14:50
Cape Town - The Cape Flats, expected to be one of country's hotly-contested
areas before the elections, proved to be one of the most laid-back on
Wednesday.
Even the potential flash point of Tafelsig in Mitchells Plain, where police
and land invaders recently clashed, was quiet after polls opened.
There were no signs of protesters as police officers kept a watch on the
area.
By lunch, the Portland High School polling station had recorded the largest
number of votes in the Mitchells Plain area, according to IEC officials.
The area was expected to be a tight contest between the Democratic Alliance
and the ANC. Polling station queues averaged about 200 people and voters came
and went in a steady flow.
At a mobile polling station in the Harare area only a handful of voters
stood in the queue. At the station in New Way, about 100 people waited to vote.
Sicelo Jack, who lives near this polling station, said he would go vote
later.
"I will wait until most of the voters have passed through and then I
will go and vote at my leisure," he said, adding this would be around 4pm.
Voting in New Way was accompanied by a carnival atmosphere with music
blaring and party organisers calling voters with loud hailers. A young woman
standing nearby however warned that criminals frequented the area.
"Don't stand here, the guys will rob you," she said.
- SAPA
