‘No regrets’ for EFF's Marshall Dlamini as he’s handed suspended sentence for assault
EFF secretary-general Marshall Dlamini has been handed a suspended prison sentence following his conviction on a charge of assault.
The Cape Town Magistrate’s Court on Friday handed the EFF MP an 18-month sentence, wholly suspended for five years.
Dlamini was found guilty of assaulting policeman Johan Carstens during the State of the Nation Address in 2019.
He was also slapped with an R6,000 fine or three months in prison for malicious damage to property.
Addressing supporters outside court, Dlamini said his actions were necessary to protect party leader Julius Malema.
"The responsibility that we have is to protect revolutionary triggers, and I knew that once the life of the president is a threat, as the organisation, we have to respond, and we are not going to respond with flowers.
"I have no time of asking questions when the president's life is under threat. I had to attend to that and we attended to it without any hesitation, with no regrets.
"Even here in court, the magistrate said I showed no remorse. I showed no regret. I was not going to show any remorse, regret or apologise. What I did that day, I can do it again.
"So, they want me to come here to apologise when I was executing my duties. I told the magistrate I will not do that, take the decision that you are going to take, but I will not sell out my own organisation because I am scared of prison.”
The EFF has said it plans to appeal both the judgment and conviction.
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