Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema has agreed to deliver a formal apology to Supreme Court of Appeal Judge Keoagile Matojane in Parliament by the end of September.
The apology follows a 2021 finding by Parliament’s Joint Committee on Ethics and Members’ Interests that Malema breached the parliamentary code during his questioning of Matojane at a Judicial Service Commission interview.
Parliament’s finding related to questions Malema asked about a 2019 ruling in which Matojane ordered the EFF to pay damages to former finance minister Trevor Manuel.
Legal challenge dismissed
Malema approached the Western Cape High Court to stop Parliament from enforcing the sanction while he challenged the committee’s decision.
The court dismissed all five grounds of his review in 2025, leaving the ethics committee’s sanction in place.
National Assembly Speaker Thoko Didiza instructed Malema in February to submit the apology. After he did not do so, the matter was referred to Parliament’s Powers and Privileges Committee.
Eyewitness News reported that Malema has now agreed through a legal letter to comply. He is expected to liaise with Didiza so that the apology can be made in the National Assembly by 30 September.
The apology concerns Malema’s conduct during the JSC interview and does not alter the underlying 2019 civil judgment involving the EFF and Manuel.
