Bid to bar EFF from Hot 91.9 FM fails
Party to be served with notice today
A Gauteng radio station’s efforts to seek an urgent high court interdict against the EFF has failed.
The red berets allegedly stormed the station’s premises looking for details of its former deejay who called EFF’s command-or-in-chief Julius Malema a monkey on air.
In an urgent court application heard in the South Gauteng High Court yesterday, Hot 91.9FM wanted the court to stop EFF members from entering its premises or harassing and threatening staff.
The station’s legal representative, Advocate Jean Badeaux, told the court the station sought to be granted an interdict Ex-Parte (without informing the EFF) to stop antagonising its members from visiting their offices in a bid to acquire Sasha Martinengo’s personal information.
However, Judge Ratha Mokgoatlheng said it would not be in the interest of justice to grant such an order in the absence and without the knowledge of the EFF.
“The due process of the court cannot be curtailed, but this is an extraordinary case, in extraordinary times and circumstances.
“However, it would not be in the interest of justice not to give notice to the respondent. I have never heard of a court acceding to such a request,” Mokgoatlheng said.
Martinengo, who was dismissed this week, labelled Malema “a monkey” on the breakfast show on Tuesday.
The station’s managing director, Lloyd Madurai, testified that he was intimidated by two members of the EFF who visited him at the office on Wednesday, a few hours before the party laid crimen injuria charges against Martinengo.
Madurai said EFF members requested Martinengo’s personal information but he refused as it was against the law.
“On the day of the incident, one of the party members who identified himself as a general came to see me and wanted to know what was being done about the presenter.
“I told him his contract had been terminated and he said this was good because if we hadn’t acted they would have acted,” Madurai said.
He said he was then shown a video in which his EFF guest was throwing rocks and told him that “this would have turned into an H&M situation” had they not acted.
Mokgoatlheng said a notice will have to be served to the EFF today by 10am, notifying them of the station’s intention to prevent them from entering its premises.
He further ordered the two parties to return to court to argue over the merits of the interdict within 21 days if they failed to reach an agreement.
‘‘ Party wants personal information on DJ who called Malema ‘a monkey’