*This article has been updated
Johannesburg - Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema appeared briefly in the Vanderbijlpark Magistrate's Court to face charges related to speeding.
He was wearing a red and blue Nike tracksuit, and chewed on bubble gum while standing in the dock.
The case was postponed.
Magistrate R Mphela postponed the matter to January 29 for the director of public prosecutions to instruct the State on further action on the case.
EFF spokesman Floyd Shivambu was in court to support Malema. He sat among a group of EFF supporters who had come to give their leader moral support.
EFF members sang struggle songs in the street outside the court.
One of the songs they sang, loosely translated, was "If you support the shower [President Jacob Zuma], you are mad".
They also sang the song "Dubula ibunu" [shoot the boer] but some replaced the word "bubu" (boer) with "Zuma
“We are here to give moral support for our leader,” EFF Free State provincial secretary Busanku Msimanga said.
“[It is not about]... the merits or demerits of the case, [he is] our brother.”
Camera crews and reporters were also in the courtroom.
Malema was arrested on Thursday evening for driving 215km/h in a 120km/h zone on the N1 in the Vaal, Gauteng traffic police spokeswoman Busaphi Nxumalo said at the time.
In an EFF statement issued on Friday morning, the party said it, along with Malema, wanted to apologise for the speeding incident.
“Economic Freedom Fighters, together with its commander in chief (CIC) fighter Julius Malema, would like to apologise for the regrettable incident of contravening the speed limit on the N1 in the Vaal.
“The CIC, who was on a tight schedule, was on his way from Bloemfontein to attend to an urgent program in Alexandra.”
The statement then explained in detail his busy itinerary over the past few days.
“EFF appreciated the great resilience that the police showed in the manner in which they dealt with the case of the CIC.”
The party alleged the police officers' superiors had “tried to instruct them to deny the CIC bail”.
The party said it encouraged South Africans “not to emulate this regrettable example”. - Sapa