South African opposition politician Julius Malema has been sentenced to five years in prison after being found guilty of illegal possession of a firearm and discharging it in public.
The leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) showed little emotion as Magistrate Twanet Olivier delivered the judgment at a court in East London, South Africa, on Thursday.
Malema’s legal team immediately filed an appeal in a bid to prevent his immediate incarceration. The sentence could also affect his eligibility to remain a member of parliament.
The charges stem from a 2018 incident during the EFF’s fifth anniversary celebration in the Eastern Cape, where a video showed Malema firing a semi-automatic rifle into the air.
In his defence, Malema argued that the firearm did not belong to him and that he discharged it to energise the crowd. However, the court rejected the claim, ruling that the act was deliberate.
“It wasn’t an impulsive act. It was the event of the evening,” Olivier said during sentencing.
The court handed Malema five years’ imprisonment on one count, two years on another, and a fine of R20,000 or six months’ imprisonment on a third count.
Malema had been convicted in October on multiple charges, including unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition, discharging a firearm in a public space, and reckless endangerment.
Reacting after the conviction, he told supporters that imprisonment or death would be “a badge of honour,” vowing to continue his political struggle. He has also pledged to challenge the ruling up to South Africa’s Constitutional Court.
