In response to a verdict that he must publicly apologize for calling EFF leader Julius Malema “a cockroach,” the vice president of the Patriotic Alliance (PA), Kenny Kunene, stated that the Equality Court’s decision is unjust and will be reversed on appeal.
Kunene expressed disbelief that Malema brought him before the Equality Court.
“My attorneys will respectfully inform the high court as soon as possible that we will indeed appeal,” Kunene said in a statement on Wednesday.
“They will argue that not only did the judge fail to weigh the different reasons offered by my attorney in the case, which according to them resulted in an improper decision, but the ruling itself is contrary to the established case law.
“My attorneys are certain that a different court will reach a different conclusion, so the appeal will be filed as soon as possible. Now is not the time for nitpicking, but I’m certain that few people could have thought that what I wrote about Julius Malema was so heinously offensive that it would be considered hate speech.
Tuesday, the Equality Court found Kunene guilty of hate speech after he referred to the EFF leader as a “cockroach” and “a little frog” in November 2021.
Motsamai Makume, in delivering the verdict, stated that Kunene’s words constitute hate speech as defined by the Equality Act.
Kunene, also known as the Sushi King, was ordered by Makume to recant his words and apologize within 30 days of the court decision. Kunene gained notoriety for consuming raw sushi from the bodies of naked ladies.
The court also prohibited Kunene from publishing, disseminating, advocating, or conveying hate speech.
It ordered the registrar of the high court to create and submit the dossier and judgment to the director of public prosecutions within thirty days after the ruling in order to determine if the challenged statements warrant criminal proceedings for crimen injuria against Kunene.
In addition, the court ordered Kunene and his assistant to pay Malema’s costs.
Kunene compared Malema to a kid and described him as a man with thin skin in his statement.
“Julius Malema repeatedly spews violence from his mouth. Julius Malema’s decision to sue me after referring to Pravin Gordhan as a “dog” who must be kicked to release the master was reprehensible. Kunene stated, “He wants to degrade others but does not wish to be degraded.”
He expressed confidence that the Supreme Court of Appeal will reach a different conclusion.
“Julius Malema criticizes both the young and the elderly, as well as the wives of sitting presidents who are not even employed in the public sphere. I will not permit Julius Malema to continue to abuse and say whatever he wants about anybody he wants, with no one having the fortitude to retaliate.”
Malema took Kunene to court after the PA vice president’s November 2021 interview with the television news network eNCA, in which Kunene made the statements. He demanded that he pay R1 million for the insults.
In the interview regarding coalition negotiations, Kunene threatened to deal with Malema, whom he described as a frog and a cockroach. During the interview, Kunene stated, “Julius is merely a vexing cockroach with whom I must now deal publicly.”
A day later, Malema requested through his attorneys that Kunene recant his words and apologize. He also pleaded with PA president Gayton McKenzie to separate his party from Kunene’s comments, but his requests were ignored.
Kunene said that he made the remarks in response to Malema’s characterization of the PA as a “amabhantinti” party (jailbirds).
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Coceka Magubeni
»Malema insults both young and elderly, but he cannot tolerate criticism – Kunene«