Marshall Dlamini, secretary-general of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), was found guilty of assault and sentenced on Friday morning.
The irascible Dlamini was convicted in the Cape Town Magistrates Court for assaulting a police officer in Parliament during the 2019 State of the Nation Address, during a fracas between the House’s security and EFF members of Parliament (MPs).
Magistrate Nasha Banwari sentenced Dlamini to 18 months in prison, suspended for five years, for assaulting Constable Johan Carstens, and also fined him R6000 or a three-month prison term for malicious damage to property.
Dlamini, via a statement issued by the Red Berets, has indicated that he plans to appeal the conviction and sentence.
Dlamini qualifies, Zuma doesn’t. Here’s why
However, this censure by the court will not affect Dlamini’s MP status, unlike Jacob Zuma.
Last month, days before the national and provincial elections, the Constitutional Court (ConCourt), citing Section 47(1)(e) of the Constitution, ruled that Zuma could not occupy a seat in Parliament, due to being found guilty of contempt in 2021 and sentenced to 15 months in prison.
Zuma was convicted and sentenced on 29 June 2021 under the Commissions Act, which compels anyone directed to appear before a commission of inquiry to attend on their given dates and times. The former president repeatedly ignored these summons, choosing to stay away from Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture.
This conviction meant Zuma could not represent his uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party in the National Assembly after the elections.
Now, why does Dlamini’s conviction and sentence not render him, like Zuma, ineligible for Parliament?
Custodial vs suspended sentence
Because Dlamini’s 18-month sentence has been suspended for five years, rendering it non-custodial, with the three-month sentence having the option of a fine, according to constitutional law expert and the Council for the Advancement of the SA Constitution’s Dan Mafora.
Zuma’s 15-month sentence did not have the option of a fine, meaning it was custodial. He served a portion of his time at Estcourt Correction Centre, until his remission by President Cyril Ramaphosa after three months in prison.
This is how Dlamini will continue to represent EFF in Parliament, while Zuma leads his MK Party from home, designating former Western Cape judge president John Hlophe as the party’s boss in the National Assembly.
Zuma will become eligible for a parliamentary seat five years after the completion of his sentence, meaning October 2027.
