CAPE TOWN, Tuesday 29 September 2026 — EFF leader Julius Malema has formally apologised in the National Assembly over his questioning of Judge Keoagile Matojane during a 2021 Judicial Service Commission interview, complying with a parliamentary order days after the High Court granted him leave to appeal an unrelated firearm conviction.
Malema delivered the apology on Tuesday, bringing him into compliance with a National Assembly resolution requiring him to apologise to Matojane and the Judicial Service Commission over questions concerning a case involving the EFF.
The apology follows a dispute stretching back five years and involving Parliament’s ethics processes and an unsuccessful court challenge by Malema.
It does not, however, end a separate legal challenge concerning his continued membership of the Judicial Service Commission.
Dispute dates back to 2021 JSC interview
The matter arose during JSC interviews in April 2021, when Matojane was being interviewed for elevation to the Supreme Court of Appeal.
Malema questioned the then-Gauteng High Court judge about a judgment involving former finance minister Trevor Manuel, the EFF and Malema.
The Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution subsequently complained to Parliament’s Joint Committee on Ethics and Members’ Interests about Malema’s conduct.
The committee found in 2021 that Malema had breached Parliament’s Code of Ethical Conduct and Disclosure of Members’ Interests and recommended that he apologise to Matojane and the JSC.
The National Assembly adopted the recommendation.
Court challenge delayed apology
Malema subsequently approached the Western Cape High Court seeking to review Parliament’s decision.
The High Court dismissed all five grounds of his challenge in May 2025.
National Assembly Speaker Thoko Didiza later instructed him to enter the apology in the House.
After the apology was still outstanding, the matter was referred to Parliament’s Powers and Privileges Committee for consideration as possible contempt of Parliament.
Malema informed the committee in August that he would apologise and asked for a date on which he could do so.
The committee ultimately set 30 September 2026 as the deadline.
Malema complied a day before that deadline.
Daily Maverick reported that the apology itself lasted only seconds, with Malema addressing the House in his home language after arrangements were made with the Speaker.
Separate court challenge over Malema’s JSC position continues
The apology does not resolve a separate legal dispute concerning Malema’s continued service on the Judicial Service Commission.
The Helen Suzman Foundation is challenging his designation to the JSC, arguing that his conduct and other developments raise questions about whether Parliament acted lawfully in designating him to the constitutional body.
That case remains before the courts and is separate from the parliamentary disciplinary process that resulted in Tuesday’s apology.
The JSC plays a central constitutional role in interviewing candidates for judicial office and advising on judicial appointments.
Members of the National Assembly designate six MPs to serve on the commission, at least three of whom must come from opposition parties.
Apology comes amid separate firearm appeal
Tuesday’s development comes days after the Eastern Cape High Court granted Malema leave to appeal his firearm convictions and effective five-year sentence arising from an incident at an EFF rally in Mdantsane in 2018.
That criminal matter is entirely separate from the parliamentary ethics case.
The High Court’s decision allows a full bench to reconsider Malema’s convictions and sentence; it did not overturn either.
The parliamentary apology, meanwhile, closes the immediate question of whether Malema would comply with the National Assembly’s outstanding instruction before Wednesday’s deadline.
