Cape Town – The High Court of South Africa: Western Cape Division on Thursday said Terrorism and arson accused, Zandile Christmas Mafe was unable to follow court proceedings to be able to defend himself, but the judge stopped short of disclosing the findings of the mental evaluation report.
Having witnessed a disturbing outburst in which Mafe seemed to admit to torching the National Assembly building, Judge Nathan Erasmus, said the accused was unable to appreciate the wrongfulness of his actions.
Mafe made a dramatic entrance into the dock. He was shouting and gesticulating wildly.
In the rather incoherent rant, Mafe told the court that he burnt down Parliament and he would burn it down again unless it is moved to Bloemfontein or Pretoria.
Mafe, who has been held in custody since his arrest last year on 2 January 2022, also claimed protests in the country happened because of his incarceration.
At one point he blurted: “Blacks… they dont have farms so we must take the land without compensation… we must grab the land for the black people. Me, Im a black consciousness movement.”
Mafe’s lawyer Nikiwe Nyathi intervened to bring calm and for proceedings to continue.
At some point, Judge Erasmus asked the accused’s lawyer to remind him of court etiquette.
Although Judge Erasmus did not disclose the diagnosis by a panel of three experts who observed Mafe over 30 days at Fort England Psychiatric Hospital, in the Eastern Cape, he said the accused was not competent.
Mafe faces charges of housebreaking with intent to commit arson and arson, terrorism, and theft related to the burning down of the Parliament buildings between 1 and 2 January 2022.
The defence requested a six-week postponement, for them to get a psychiatrist of their choice who will consult with Mafe, the panel of experts and then draft a report which will assist them to determine whether they will challenge the report of the panel from Fort England Psychiatric Hospital.
The defence told the court that they struggled to get a psychiatrist to assist them, but eventually managed to secure one.
Judge Erasmus was not pleased with the request: I caused an email to be sent earlier in the week to enquire from the parties as to what the situation is”.
Judge Erasmus added: “I received no response except from the prosecutor saying that he sent emails to the defence, and he didnt get a response so that I can prepare myself for todays hearing which is in the middle of a court recess.
“We made ourselves available, we arranged with the IT department in the court building and everybody else to be there.
“We were kept in the dark until last night. This is totally unacceptable.
Judge Erasmus, however, said Mafe had a right to challenge the report if he wished to do so.
On the other hand, I cannot blame Mafe who is sitting in a hospital ward in the prison for whats happening today,” the presiding judge said.
“And I understand that the accused was held in the Eastern Cape and was only brought here shortly before his appearance in court.
“So it would have been difficult to engage with the contents of the report.
“I find it unacceptable that there was that delay, although I granted an indulgence until today for this matter to be considered, whether the defence wants to dispute the findings of the panel or not as the State has indicated they are accepting the report.
Judge Erasmus granted the defence three and a half weeks of postponement and indicated that it was a final postponement. The case has been postponed until 10 August 2023.
