Johannesburg - #FeesMustFall student activist Mcebo Dlamini has now got a criminal record that puts an end to his legal career ambitions.
The law graduate and former University of Witwatersrand SRC president was on Monday found guilty of public violence and slapped with a suspended sentence of two years and six months’ imprisonment.
He will, however, only do prison time if he is found guilty of a similar offence in the next five years.
Dlamini made the announcement of both his conviction and sentencing on social media. “Today marked the end of my legal career. The court found me guilty of public violence, thus (sentencing) me to two years and six months (conditionally) suspended sentence for five years.
“I will take time to reflect on my future moving forward, including my political career. I thank you,” he said.
Dlamini was arrested for a number of charges, including violating a court order, public violence, theft, and malicious damage to property. He also was also accused of assaulting a police officer.
In August 2019, Dlamini embarked on a gruelling 56.6km walk from Wits University to the Union Buildings to ask President Cyril Ramaphosa to release student activists arrested during the #FeesMustFall protests that had hit the country since 2015.
However, Ramaphosa was out of the country at the time.