Malema says the ruling that his party must pay former finance minister, Trevor Manuel, R500 000 and also apologise to him for their remarks about him is nothing but an encouragement for his party to keep on fighting Manuel, amongst others. He was addressing close to 500 party loyalists who braved the cold weather of Mangaung after another court postponement today on charges against him relating to the apartheid-era Riotous Assemblies Act of 1956 after he allegedly urged people to occupy vacant land in 2014.

He adds that the recent two judgments against the EFF mean that they have hit the right nerve of the legal justice system and this only shows that they are on the right track in the quest for land without compensation. Malema said to party supporters that they must not be shocked when such rulings relating to Manuel against the EFF goes against them because the courts and justice system is part of what he labels as the ‘establishment used to oppress black people’ many years ago.

Meanwhile, the EFF earlier confirmed that they will approach the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) in the metro to appeal the recent decision by the Johannesburg High Court on Tuesday 18 June 2019 when it dismissed its leave to appeal the judgment against it, which determined that the statement earlier made against Manuel was unlawful and false. The court further ordered the EFF to apologise to Manuel and remove the statement from all its platforms and it also awarded Manuel R500 000 in damages. This after the EFF in March accused Manuel of nepotism and corruption in influencing the appointment of new Sars commissioner, Edward Kieswetter.

The EFF has, however, urged his followers not to be moved by the ruling, saying his party was not the first to lose a court case. Manuel approached the High Court after the party accused him of a conflict of interest in the appointment. It is reported that on December 16, 2014, during the party’s elective conference, Malema incited party members to commit a crime by occupying any vacant land they came across.

During his appearance on Friday in courtroom 20, his legal representative, Hanno Maree, requested that the accused being Malema be excused from the next court appearance on grounds that the party is already challenging the constitutionality of the Riotous Assemblies Act. The NPA did not oppose the request and rather said they do not have a problem with Malema being excused from the next appearance on 8 November as he has other obligations as a member of the National Assembly.

OFM News