By Lesedi Sibiya-Diplomatic Insider
Leader of the Economic Freedom Fighter (EFF), Julius Malema has been sentenced to five years in prison for discharging a rifle in the air in 2018 during an EFF rally, as the East London magistrates court decided.
Malema was convicted last year on five charges which include an unlawful possession of a firearm and discharging weapon in a public space at a stadium in the Eastern Cape.
Malema’s lawyers decided to move to appeal the magistrates decision immediately after it was read in KuGompo City, formerly known as East London. If all the appeals are lost this could mean that Malema is to be barred from all his governmental positions.
Malema’s lawyer has noted that he will appeal the decision to prevent Malema from being taken to prison. Malema has maintained in court that the firearm did not belong to him and that he fired the shots to ignite the crowd.
Malema was initially found guilty in October last year and told his supporters that dying or going to prison for your cause is something of an honour.
“We cannot be scared of prison or to die for the revolution. Whatever they want to do, they must know we will never retreat” said Malema. Malema also vowed that he would take this matter to the highest court in the land, the Constitutional Court.
The prosecution began with the Afrikaner lobby group Afriforum, which has since had a contentious relationship with the Economic Freedom Fighters and opened the case when the video went viral.
This verdict could prove to be a major setback for the EFF which has garnered strong support from young South Africans that have been left frustrated by racial inequality that has been heavily prevalent and persistent since the end of white minority rule in 1994.
The EFF also serves as the fourth largest party in parliament and Malema has not pleaded guilty on the charges brought against him. Malema has also accused Afriforum of deliberately trying to silence black voices in South Africa.
“We are here because of Afriforum, which wants to silence the voice of black people” said Malema on the second day of his pre-sentencing hearing.
He also maintains that this verdict is politically motivated and not based on genuine concern for public safety. Malema has also noted that Afriforum consistently targeted the EFF due to their vocalisation of land expropriation, radical economic transformation and the fight against “white monopoly capital” and claims that Afriforum consistently uses courts and media to silence black led movements that speak of economic liberation.