Parliament arson: Zandile Mafe refuses to appear in court again, case postponed

The pre-trial hearing of alleged Parliament arsonist Zandile Mafe has been postponed after he pulled a no-show in court again.

Mafe was meant to appear in the Western Cape High Court on Friday morning, for his second pre-trial hearing, where the court was expected to set a date for trial. However, he allegedly refused to leave Pollsmoor Prison in Cape Town.

At his first high court appearance on 12 August, Mafe also did not show up despite being in the holding cells of the court. 

ALSO READ: Hearing postponed as pyjama clad Zandile Mafe refuses to appear in court

The court heard that Mafe was lying on the floor in the holding cells in his pyjamas. He refused to appear because he was allegedly ill after being on hunger strike.

The 49-year-old has been in custody since January, since he was arrested in connection with the Parliament fire on 2 January 2022, which destroyed the Old and New Assembly buildings.

He faces charges of housebreaking with intent to commit arson and arson, terrorism and theft.

Mafe refuses to appear in court

During Friday’s court proceedings, Mafe’s attorney, Luvuyo Godla, told presiding Judge Elize Steyn that he distanced himself from his client’s conduct.

“When I say I distance myself from his conduct, it does not imply that I distance myself from him. I still dearly want to help him. What I meant was that it was not my advice for him not to come to court,” Godla told Newzroom Afrika.

Godla gave assurances that his client would be in the dock during his next appearance, after the case was postponed to 4 November 2022.

Godla cautioned that Mafe’s behaviour might have an impact on his bail application appeal before the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA), saying the implications were very serious.

“He will come to court on the fourth [and] he does not know the implications of what he is doing.

“It is correct for any individual to show dissatisfaction on any issue, however, it does not automatically follow that one understands how he or she expresses themselves,” he said.

The State maintained that it was ready to start with the trial after senior State advocate Mervyn Menigo advised the court that 95% of their case was forwarded to the defence.

In May, the Western Cape High Court dismissed Mafe’s bid to appeal the dismissal of his bail application.

The appeal followed the Cape Town Regional Court’s judgment in February, which ruled that the defence failed to prove exceptional circumstances as to why Mafe should be released on bail.

Mafe is appealing the high court’s judgment to the SCA in Bloemfontein.

NOW READ: Zandile Mafe’s bail appeal dismissed, but ‘it’s not over’, says his lawyer