Malema granted leave to appeal conviction in firearm discharge case

EFF leader Julius Malema has been granted leave to appeal his conviction and five-year sentence in his firearm case.

The Eastern Cape High Court has granted Julius Malema leave to appeal his conviction in a firearm-discharge case. The case stems from a viral video of Malema firing shots into the air at the EFF’s fifth-anniversary celebrations in Mdantsane in July 2018.

This after he petitioned the Eastern Cape High Court in Makhanda to appeal the finding of the KuGompo Magistrate’s Court. Malema was found guilty of unlawful possession of a firearm, for which he was sentenced to five years in jail. The court further sentenced him to two years’ imprisonment for unlawful possession of ammunition and fined him R20 000 for each of the remaining charges: discharge of a firearm in a built-up area.

The court ordered that the latter sentences run concurrently with the five-year term, and further declared Malema unfit to possess a firearm.

The ruling overturns the earlier decision by the Kgompo City Magistrate’s Court, which allowed him to appeal his sentence but refused leave to challenge his convictions.

The latest ruling means the convictions will now be considered by a full bench of the Makhanda High Court.