Cape Town - Parliament arsonist accused Zandile Mafe’s lawyers said they would pursue the matter of his bail as far as the Constitutional Court, if needs be, after his bail appeal was dismissed in the Western Cape High Court on Monday.
Mafe, through his lawyers advocate Dali Mpofu and Luvuyo Godla, brought an application in the high court – where they said the magistrate was wrong in refusing to grant him bail as exceptional circumstances did exist to permit his release.
Mafe, who was not present for the bail appeal, is set to appear in the magistrate’s court on June 9. He is charged with housebreaking with intent to commit terrorism and arson, arson, terrorism and theft.
The matter was heard before a full bench, as his previous bail appeal had resulted in a divided outcome. This time, Judges James Lekhuleni and Daniel Thulare were joined by Judge Constance Nziweni.
With three judges on the bench, the split decision now resulted in a majority and minority finding.
Judge Thulare made an order that the application be dismissed with Judge Nziweni concurring in the majority, while Judge Lekhuleni said in his view the appeal would have been upheld. A full judgment is expected in due course.
Advocate Dali Mpofu tried to convince the court that there were flagrant irregularities in the way the State dealt with Mafe’s bail application proceedings. He said the State failed to furnish his client with the information regarding the charges, and then ambushed the defence with additional charges at the last hour.
He also questioned how Mafe’s confession could be considered admissible when the State, at the outset, brought an application for Mafe’s referral to a mental institution.
State prosecutor Mervyn Menigo opposed the application and told the court that the magistrate’s decision was based on the prescribed bail legislation, and there was no merit to what was proffered as exceptional circumstances. He also dealt with what the State has said is a degree of “violence” and “resentment”, allegedly shown by Mafe, as a motivating factor for the charge of terrorism.
After judgment, Godla said: “We will appeal and, if it needs be, after consideration of the judgment, that we will still appeal up until the last court of the land. We will surely do so, but I can tell you right now is that it’s still not over.”