The African National Congress has accused AfriForum of pursuing a political campaign against its secretary-general Fikile Mbalula after the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) decided to prosecute him for crimen injuria over comments linked to a former Eastern Cape school principal.
The dispute centres on remarks Mbalula made in April 2025 following allegations that a seven-year-old girl had been raped at Bergview College in Matatiele.
Former principal Jaco Pieterse later laid criminal complaints against Mbalula, Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema and Eastern Cape Education MEC Fundile Gade, with support from AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit.
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The NPA has now confirmed that Mbalula will be prosecuted after AfriForum successfully challenged an earlier decision not to pursue the case.
But the ANC hit back on Sunday, questioning why the lobby group appeared to know about the prosecution before Mbalula or the governing party had formally been informed.
“It is peculiar, irregular and potentially corrupt that a special interest political outfit, AfriForum, is the first conveyor of a decision by an institution of State charged with independently managing aspects of our criminal justice system,” ANC national spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu said.
The party went further, accusing AfriForum of using legal processes to pursue a political campaign against Mbalula and the ANC.
“AfriForum longs for a country where black people are expected to bow their heads and answer ‘ja baas’,” Bhengu said.
“That country is gone, and the ANC will never allow it to return.”
The ANC described AfriForum as a “racist organisation” that had made attacking the governing party and opposing transformation part of its political project.
AfriForum disputes the ANC’s characterisation of its actions and maintains that the case is about holding public figures accountable for statements that it says damaged Pieterse’s dignity and reputation.
How the case reached the NPA
The controversy has its roots in allegations made in 2024 that a young girl had been raped at Bergview College.
Pieterse and a school caretaker became the subjects of widespread public accusations, although Pieterse was never a suspect in the police investigation.
The NPA later decided not to prosecute anyone in connection with the reported rape. It said medical examinations and interviews conducted by medical practitioners and forensic social workers did not produce evidence of rape or sexual assault.
Police Minister Senzo Mchunu also previously apologised after incorrectly identifying Pieterse as a suspect.
Mbalula’s crimen injuria case stems from comments he made while addressing the media following an ANC meeting on 1 April 2025.
While discussing the Bergview matter, Mbalula criticised AfriForum for becoming involved in the case and accused the organisation of shielding suspects instead of supporting justice.
He also used descriptions including “animal” while speaking about the person he was discussing.
AfriForum maintains that the surrounding circumstances made it clear that the comments referred to Pieterse, despite Mbalula not mentioning him by name.
The ANC disputes that interpretation.
It said Mbalula had been presenting an official party statement following discussions by the ANC’s National Executive Committee on gender-based violence and femicide.
“It named no person as a suspect. If that statement is to be answered for, it is answered for by the African National Congress and AfriForum knows this very well,” Bhengu said.
The party added that its statement had followed the public identification of a suspect by the police minister and SAPS. When that identification was later corrected, the ANC said it also publicly acknowledged the correction.
AfriForum challenged earlier decision
Prosecutors initially declined to prosecute Mbalula.
AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit subsequently made representations to Gauteng Director of Public Prosecutions Andrew Chauke on 13 August, arguing that the earlier decision was irrational.
The organisation announced on 21 September that those representations had succeeded and that Mbalula would be charged with crimen injuria in the Johannesburg Regional Court.
NPA spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago subsequently confirmed the decision, saying the national prosecuting authority had been informed by the Gauteng South DPP that a decision to prosecute had been made and communicated to AfriForum.
AfriForum Private Prosecution Unit head Advocate Gerrie Nel said the decision should send a message that public figures were not above the law.
The organisation argues that Pieterse’s dignity was impaired by the public comments and that the fact he was not explicitly named should not determine whether an offence was committed.
AfriForum spokesperson Barry Bateman told SABC News that Pieterse remained unemployed following the controversy and maintained that the public accusations had caused significant damage to him and his family.
The merits of those claims will ultimately form part of the legal dispute rather than being determined through the political exchanges surrounding the case.
Malema also faces prosecution
Mbalula is not the only politician facing legal action arising from comments about Pieterse.
The NPA confirmed in August that Malema would also be prosecuted for crimen injuria following representations from AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit.
Pieterse’s complaints against Mbalula, Malema and Gade stem from statements made during the intense public attention surrounding the Bergview case.
The ANC, however, has questioned AfriForum’s broader involvement in the Mbalula matter, accusing the organisation of being “obsessed” with its secretary-general and using state institutions to pursue political objectives.
AfriForum has rejected that position and says its intervention followed the NPA’s earlier refusal to prosecute and was aimed at ensuring Pieterse’s complaint received proper consideration.
The ANC said Mbalula would now deal with the case through the legal process.
