The man suspected of being behind the fire that engulfed South Africa’s parliament on January 2 in Cape Town has been charged with “terrorism”, as he made his second appearance in a South African Court on Tuesday.
Zandile Christmas Mafe, 49, was arrested on Sunday while on the parliamentary grounds and was charged three days later in a brief appearance in a Cape Town court.
The charged sheet seen by journalists indicates that the accused “is guilty of the offence of contravening the provisions of the protection of democracy against terrorism and associated activities.”
Ahead of the hearing, around 30 people gathered outside the court to demand the suspect be freed.”Mafe is innocent.”
Since the arrest, there has been growing debate in the media questioning the suspect’s role in the fire with some blaming the situation on security and fire safety failures.
A preliminary report said that the fire detection system appeared faulty and had not been serviced since 2017.
The fire started at dawn on January 2nd and devastated parts of the complex including the National Assembly, the roof of which collapsed.