EFF students vowed to bring SA to its knees should Julius Malema be handed a custodial sentence
Image: Doctor Ngcobo / Independent Newspapers
The EFF's student wing threatened to render SA ungovernable if Julius Malema is sent to jail.
The warning came from Mahlatse Dlamini, chairperson of the UCT EFF Youth Command, late on Tuesday night.
Malema, the red-berets' commander-in-chief, is expected to appear in the magistrate's court in KuGompo City, formerly East London, for two-day sentencing proceedings starting on Wednesday. Read more on this here.
Malema was found guilty as charged in October last year of unlawfully discharging a firearm at an EFF birthday rally in Mdantsane in 2018.
Adriaan Snyman, Malema's erstwhile bodyguard and co-accused, walked free after the court found there was insufficient evidence against him.
The charges included unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition, reckless endangerment, and discharging a firearm in a public place.
The state is seeking a prison term of up to 15 years or at the very least, 10 years with three years suspended and fines on the remaining counts.
"No matter how tomorrow unfolds, the fight for economic freedom continues," Dlamini told IOL.
"We say to AfriForum that no one can stop an idea whose time has come."
AfriForum, the Afrikaner lobby group, laid the criminal charges against Malema under the Firearms Control Act.
Dlamini further warned: "If the commander-in-chief is jailed, we are going to render the country ungovernable.
"They can jail the liberator, but they can't jail the liberation.
"If they want to kill the revolution, they will have to arrest millions of us."
EFF UCT Youth Command chair Mahlatse Dlamini warned that millions would rise up if Julius Malema was jailed
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EFF spokesman Sinawo Thambo said the party was ready for whatever the court handed down.
"We have been informed that the state will be pursuing a custodial sentence of 15 years and, should that be the case, we will oppose it and immediately appeal," he told IOL.
"We are confident in our case for appeal and are additionally confident that the president and commander-in-chief will be available to continue with the great work he does for the people of SA."
Political analyst Prof André Duvenhage said Malema would likely try to stall the process if handed a custodial sentence.
"I believe he will appeal the process and adopt elements of a 'Stalingrad strategy'," he said.
"He will most likely resist legal proceedings, searching for loopholes, seeking delays, and attempting to undermine the judiciary from a political standpoint.
"That is likely to be his approach.
"People close to him say he is not overly concerned about the outcome of the court case, as he believes he will be able to appeal the ruling and deal with it further down the line."
IOL