Julius Malema, the leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), has been sentenced to five years’ imprisonment after the East London Regional Court found that a prison sentence was warranted for his role in firing a rifle into the air at the party’s fifth anniversary rally in Mdantsane in KuGompo (formerly East London) in July 2018. Magistrate Twanet Olivier said the court had weighed the seriousness of the offence against Malema’s personal circumstances, including that he is a first-time offender, but rejected the contention that the shooting was a harmless act of celebration.

As covered by The Common Sense, Malema was convicted in October 2025 on five counts, namely unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, discharging a firearm in a built-up area, failure to take reasonable precautions to person or property, and reckless endangerment to person or property.

The state had pushed for a prison term of up to 15 years, arguing that allowing a senior political leader to avoid jail would send the wrong signal in a country already struggling to uphold the rule of law. Prosecutor Joel Cesar told the court that “the accused is a political leader with a huge following … young people emulate this kind of behaviour”, adding that “he’s a Member of Parliament, a lawmaker, but he breaks the law”.

The sentence includes five years on the main count of unlawful possession of a firearm, with the remaining counts ordered to run concurrently, and that Malema has been declared unfit to possess a firearm. His legal team indicated that it will appeal.

Section 47(1)(e) of the Constitution disqualifies anyone from serving in the National Assembly if they are convicted of a crime and sentenced to more than 12 months’ imprisonment without the option of a fine.

However, the same provision makes clear that a person is not regarded as having been sentenced for that purpose until any appeal has been determined.

It is almost certain that Julius Malema will appeal the ruling and seek to exhaust every available legal avenue before any sentence takes effect. In procedural terms, that process will likely begin with an application for leave to appeal from the East London Magistrate’s Court, failing which the application may be made to the Eastern Cape High Court. If granted, the appeal will be heard by the High Court, with any further challenge proceeding to the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein, and ultimately, if constitutional grounds arise, to the Constitutional Court.

In practice, a fully contested appeal process of this kind can extend over several years, meaning that the sentence imposed this week may take considerable time to reach finality and that Malema may still remain a Member of Parliament for years to come.