- Julius Malema, the leader of the opposition in South Africa, and five other members of parliament from his Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party were sentenced to one month of unpaid leave from parliament on Wednesday.
- They were found guilty of contempt of parliament by the powers and privileges committee of parliament for storming the stage during President Cyril Ramaphosa’s state of the nation speech in February.
- After then, the speaker put a stop to the meeting as security escorted Mr. Malema and the other MPs out of the hall.
- In addition, the committee said that “each member must also make an apology in person in the House to the president, the speaker, and the people of South Africa” for interfering with the president’s speech and “putting the country in a bad light”.
- The six MPs will be suspended for the entire month of February in the next year, which means that Mr. Malema and the other five MPs will not be allowed to attend the president’s upcoming state of the country speech, which is scheduled for that same month.
- Following the committee’s denial of their request for a postponement, the EFF MPs on Monday declined to take part in the hearings against them.
- Additionally, Mr. Malema voiced his disapproval of the nomination of attorney Anton Katz as the hearing’s starter.
- “A white man cannot persecute me,” said Mr. Malema.
Source:
BBC.com
