Economic Freedom Fighters leader (EFF) Julius Malema’s R1 million defamation lawsuit against Patriotic Alliance (PA) deputy president Kenny Kunene has been struck off the court roll due to an administrative error by Malema’s legal team.
Judge Leonard Twala at the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg on 9 June ruled that the matter be removed from the roll after Malema’s lawyers failed to upload their heads of argument to the Caselines online-management system by the required deadline.
As a result of the ruling, Malema was ordered to pay the legal costs for Kunene’s legal team.
The lawsuit stemmed from comments Kunene made during an interview on the Podcast and Chill with MacG programme in February.
In his court papers, Malema alleged that Kunene made several defamatory statements, including claims linking him to a “Big Five” drug cartel.
Kunene also allegedly stated that Malema had a close relationship with the late taxi boss Jothan “Mswazi” Msibi, including allegations of midnight visits to Msibi’s farm, where Malema was allegedly gifted R80 000 in cash and expensive whiskey.
The PA deputy president further claimed that Malema lived in the “backroom” of businessman and alleged cigarette smuggler Adriano Mazzotti.
Malema’s legal team also took issue with Kunene’s use of the term “a boy” to describe the EFF leader, arguing it carried significant racist undertones.
While the case was removed due to procedural non-compliance rather than a decision on its merits, Malema’s legal team has indicated an intention to re-enroll the matter after resolving the procedural issues.
Kunene has publicly stated he is prepared to defend the matter should it be brought back to court and has refused to retract his statements or apologise.
The defamation case is one of several legal confrontations between the two political figures.
In a separate matter, the Equality Court ruled in 2025 that Kunene’s 2021 reference to Malema as a “cockroach” constituted hate speech, an order Kunene has appealed.
The two politicians have been involved in various legal skirmishes since at least 2025 regarding allegations of defamation and conduct.
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