SA is not yet free – paroled Lungisa

Former Nelson Mandela Bay municipality ANC councillor Andile Lungisa, speaking shortly after his release on parole yesterday, said the fight for freedom for the country as a whole was still being charted.

“A breakthrough is like a stone – if you throw that stone through a window it will not break the window in totality,” said Lungisa, explaining that the negotiated settlement in 1994 was only the start of freedom for the majority of South Africans.

He said the majority of the economy was still in the control of “white hands”.

“It is only in South Africa where you have the minority complaining about the majority,” he said. “We need to change the South African situation… Our people are standing on street corners – the economy in this country is controlled by the tiny minority.”

In 2018, the former Youth League leader was found guilty of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm and sentenced to three years in prison, of which one year was suspended for five years on condition that he was not convicted of similar crimes during the period of suspension.

Lungisa smashed a glass jug over the head of former mayoral committee member for transport Rano Kayser at a municipality council chamber meeting in 2016.

In its ruling, the Supreme Court of Appeal said at the time: “The appeal is dismissed. It was conceded on the appellant’s behalf that the offence he committed was ‘particularly serious and even egregious’.”

The court highlighted the fact that the “weapon” used in assaulting the complainant was particularly dangerous.

The department of correctional services confirmed that first-time offender Lungisa was to be released after he responded positively to rehabilitation programmes.

He was released on bail on 25 May, 2018 after having spent 16 days awaiting his appeal application. He was readmitted to continue the sentence on 17 September after the appeal application was dismissed.

The special remission of sentences granted by President Cyril Ramaphosa on 16 December last year reduced Lungisa’s sentence by 12 months. More than 14 000 inmates benefitted from the special remission of sentence.

The parole placement meant Lungisa would serve the remainder of the sentence in the system of community corrections, wherein he would be expected to comply with a set of conditions and would be subjected to supervision until the sentence expired.

“South Africa uses a parole system that is progressive and based on international best practice,” the department said.