While millions of students across South Africa see Mcebo Dlamini’s arrest as history in the making, word from his defence attorney has proven that this case is nothing but politically motivated.
Speaking at the Palm Ridge High court on Tuesday, Mcebo’s lawyer, Dali Mpofu, said evidence of this was a meeting between President Jacob Zuma, Justice Minister Michael Masutha and NPA head Shaun Abrahams at the ANC headquarters in October, days before Dlamini was arrested.
“This meeting constitutes the best evidence of the feared political interference.”
This comes after Dlamini was denied bail by the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on October 19 following his charges of malicious damages to property, theft, assault, and public violence during student protests at Wits University.
‘’It was not just a wild statement Dlamini had made in his affidavit, It was difficult to imagine Zuma, Masutha and Abrahams having a legitimate and lawful meeting to discuss students’ protests without the ministers of finance and education, and the police commissioner being present.
The only reasonable conclusion that could be drawn was that the politicians were seeking to unduly interfere in the student protests,’’ Mpofu said.
Mpofu also argued that the video footage mentioned during Dlamini’s first bail hearing by prosecutor Steven Rubin was fictitious. The video, according to Rubin, sees Dlamini throwing a brick at the police.
However, the only evidence presented this far by Rubin is two, still, photographs that apparently showed Dlamini with his back to the camera.
“Why does the State claim that the person in this photo is the applicant, because it’s a photo of the rear of this person?” Mpofu asked.
Advocate Mpofu believes that the State did not have any video footage of Dlamini throwing a brick at the law force.
On the other hand, students all over the country have vowed to stand in solidarity with Mcebo Dlamini regardless of what the state decides on his fate.
Picture credit: Sowetan Live
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T.Nkabinde
