President Cyril Ramaphosa has said the sight of scores of voters overseas queues to cast their ballots this weekend reminded him of the first election of the democratic era in April 1994.
At many polling stations around the country 30 years ago, photographs of snaking queues of patient voters became iconic images of the post-apartheid inauguration of democracy in South Africa.
This appeared to be echoed in various centres around the world on Saturday when South Africans formed long queues to cast their votes in the current, crucial election.
According to News24, more than 70 000 South Africans living abroad were expected to cast their votes.
The televised scenes prompted the President to remark: “It reminds one of the 27th of April in 1994 when so many of South Africans stood in long queues. As I saw some of the queues on TV, it was reminiscent of what happened on 27 April in 1994.”
News24 quoted Ramaphosa as adding: “It’s really uplifting for our democracy that people are coming out in their thousands all over the world to go and vote in various places. They see that this is a crucial election and it’s heartening to see South Africans responding to the call we’ve made [to go] out and vote.”
He said he hoped for a huge turnout to “strengthen” the seventh administration.