By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Arson accused Zandile Mafe shouted out in the Western Cape High Court on Thursday that he was indeed the one who set fire to Parliament.
The case against Mafe, the suspected parliament arsonist, resumed at the Western Cape High Court on Thursday.
His pre-trial appearance was intended to provide feedback on a second psychiatric assessment that he underwent.
The first assessment, which concluded that he had schizophrenia, was declared unlawful.
That finding of the second assessment is still sealed.
But as soon as Mafe stepped into court on Thursday, he had a dramatic outburst in which he shouted that he was indeed the one who set fire to Parliament.
Mafe called for Parliament to be moved to Bloemfontein and threatened to set fire to the building again if it didn’t move.
“You must take it into Bloemfontein, that Parliament, or Pretoria. It must move. It must relocated. I burnt it intentionally. Me, Christmas Zandile Mafe. I’m going to burn it more if it doesn’t move to Bloemfontein or Pretoria,” he said.
[WATCH] Alleged Parliament arsonist Zandile Mafe, who has been remanded in the hospital section of Pollsmoor Prison for several weeks, is appearing at the Western Cape High Court today. Here’s his outburst in the dock.#Newzroom405 pic.twitter.com/khIwEjtLZu
— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) July 13, 2023
He also called the DA “racists” and “murderers”, saying the party should not be represented in Parliament.
The outburst also included an anti-white and anti-semitic rant in the dock.
“I don’t want whites in this land. They must bring back land to black people. Whites are murders. Whites are killers.”
He was detained in the hospital section of the Pollsmoor correctional facility, had initially refused to go to a Cape Town hospital and was subsequently sent for a 30-day psychiatric observation at the Fort England Psychiatrics’ Hospital in the Eastern Cape.
Mafe’s defence team said they were not prepared to proceed. Adv Dali Mpofu asked for a postponement so that a forensic psychiatrist could meet Mafe on Zoom. Only then would they be able to say whether they agreed with the report’s diagnosis or intend to contest it.
Prosecutor Mervyn Menigo reiterated that the State has been ready to proceed since August 2022 when pre-trial proceedings began.
He told the court: “In court, we got a taste of Mafe’s conditions. I’m just a bit concerned if indeed the diagnosis is correct as indicated in the report. Taking off my lawyer hat and putting on my humanitarian hat, we are dealing with someone who is inhumane.”
Judge Nathan Erasmus said: “This will be the final postponement. If nothing is received from the parties, I’m satisfied that I will deal with the matter in terms of the report.”
The defence and the State have been ordered to file their respective reports by 8 August.
The court further ordered that Mafe be held in the hospital section of Pollsmoor Prison, or any other correctional facility if there is no space available.
The judge reiterated: “I don’t want Mafe to be held with the general population.”
The matter has been postponed to 10 August where proceedings will be heard virtually.