South African opposition leader Julius Malema has been handed a five-year jail term after a court found him guilty of unlawfully possessing a firearm and discharging it in public.
Following the ruling delivered on Thursday, April 16, Malema’s legal team said they would challenge the judgment and seek to stop him from being taken into custody while the appeal process continues.
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader had previously been convicted on five counts, among them unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition, firing the weapon in a public place, and reckless endangerment.
The case stemmed from a 2018 incident during the fifth anniversary celebrations of EFF in Eastern Cape, where video footage showed Malema firing several shots into the air using a semi-automatic rifle.
During the trial, Malema argued that the firearm did not belong to him and said he discharged it to energize supporters at the event.
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After the guilty verdict was delivered last October, Malema declared that going to prison or death is a badge of 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," he said at the time.
Malema also pledged to pursue the matter through every legal avenue, including an appeal to Constitutional Court.
His co-accused and former bodyguard, Adriaan Snyman, was cleared of two charges, including failing to take reasonable precautions to prevent danger and supplying a firearm to a person not permitted to possess one.
According to the Constitution of South Africa and South African electoral law, if Malema goes to prison after sentencing, he could lose his seat in Parliament.
South Africa’s Constitution disqualifies a person from serving in the National Assembly if they are convicted of an offence and sentenced to more than 12 months in prison without the option of a fine, unless the conviction is later overturned.
If the sentence remains in force after all appeals, he would likely stop serving as a Member of Parliament and lose the privileges attached to that office.
However, that would not automatically remove him as leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters; party leadership is governed by internal party rules, so the EFF could still choose to retain him as president.
Malema's main legal option is to appeal both the conviction and the sentence.
If a higher court accepts the appeal, the sentence could be reduced, suspended, or overturned entirely. He could also apply for bail pending appeal so that he remains free while the case continues through the courts.
Another option would be to challenge only the severity of the punishment.
Even if the conviction remains, his lawyers could ask for a lighter sentence such as correctional supervision, suspension of the prison term, or a reduced jail sentence.
If there are claims that his constitutional rights were violated or that the trial was unfair, the matter could eventually be taken to higher courts, including the Constitutional Court of South Africa.
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