EFF president Julius Malema is seemingly denying paying more than R100 000 to civil-rights organisation AfriForum following a cost order.
According to a statement issued by AfriForum on Sunday, Malema and the EFF made a payment of R108 960,79 on January 10 – the second of five cost orders AfriForum obtained through various court cases brought against the EFF since March 2017.
The first payment of R126 703,59 was made on November 13 last year.
But despite the statement and the media reporting on the payment, Malema appears to be in the dark.
Replying to a report by EWN on Sunday, Malema tweeted: “I can’t afford even if I wanted to pay, stop lying.”
Asked how it felt to be “pushed” into a “#paybackthemoneysituation”, Malema replied: “Pushed by who?”
Malema later tweets: “Ok, thank you for information” and “If you don’t mind, it was between the two of us.”
Julius Malema & EFF pay further R100k to AfriForum for legal costs https://t.co/Xq5fA9L6g8 pic.twitter.com/3cr1PAmSVe
— Eyewitness News (@ewnupdates) January 13, 2019
According to the statement by AfriForum, it had obtained five cost orders against Malema and the EFF in five different appearances in the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria. It was estimated that the total amount due in terms of the cost orders was around R550 000.
“After paying more than R235 000 to AfriForum, Malema and the EFF still owes [AfriForum] approximately R315 000.
“The outstanding cost orders will be paid later, as two still had to be taxed and one was subject to an appeal application brought by Malema and the EFF,” AfriForum CEO Kallie Kriel said.
Owing to the payments, Kriel said AfriForum would not continue to sell the EFF’s assets it had seized via the sheriff of the court until legal processes regarding the payments had been finalised.
The five cost orders stem from a court case that AfriForum brought against Malema and the EFF last year to obtain an interdict to prohibit them from encouraging people to occupy land illegally.
The High Court in Pretoria ruled in AfriForum’s favour on March 7, 2017, and granted the interdict with costs.
Read: ‘Bring it on, papa, we are not scared of these boers’ – Malema on AfriForum
Malema and the EFF then brought an application to set the interdict aside, which was set to be heard on September 12, 2017.
However, the court postponed the case after Malema and the EFF’s heads of argument were submitted late.
The judge then issued a punitive cost order against Malema and the EFF.
With the resumption of the case on February 18, 2018, Malema and the EFF’s legal representatives did not turn up and the case was decided in AfriForum’s favour.
A further cost order was issued against Malema and EFF.
The other two orders were issued on November 14, 2018, in two separate cases in the High Court in Pretoria.
At the time, Malema said that AfriForum won its cases against his party based on technicalities, rather than merit.
“The mistake we made as the EFF was to hire incompetent people who lack professionalism, who are not in a position to follow up matters before court in detail.
“We have restructured the legal team of the EFF,” Malema said in an interview with eNCA.
Despite several attempts, the EFF could not be reached for comment.
