The leader of the EFF in Mpumalanga, Collen Sedibe, is breathing a sigh of relief after the Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court withdrew an interim protection order related to accusations that he issued death threats to a Lowveld businessman.
On Wednesday, the court accepted Sedibe’s representations on why the protection order related to a harassment charge opened against him should not be made permanent, effectively clearing him of the allegations.
The matter was brought by businessman Sifiso Magonyane, who claimed that Sedibe sent him threatening WhatsApp messages earlier this year.
In his complaint, Magonyane alleged that Sedibe warned he was being watched and even received a message stating that he would die.
Sedibe denied issuing death threats, insisting instead that his WhatsApp messages were meant as political warnings.
He claimed he had been tipped off by a whistleblower about an alleged murder plot involving Magonyane and that his words were a cautionary alert, not intimidation.
Harassment and vigilantism
Court documents previously revealed that Sedibe accused Magonyane of conspiring to kill businessman Ben Nkambule.
Rather than report the matter to police, Sedibe contacted Magonyane directly, telling him: “We know all your plans, and you and your corrupt MEC mother will not succeed. We know that you bought people to kill Ben … we will show you wonders.”
Magonyane rejected the claims, saying he had no knowledge of Nkambule and that Sedibe’s actions amounted to harassment and vigilantism.
He sought to have the protection order made permanent, arguing that Sedibe’s allegations were baseless and had forced him to hire private security at great personal cost.
In the end, however, the magistrate ruled in Sedibe’s favour, noting that his representations carried enough weight to prevent the interim protection order from being confirmed.
The dismissal means the high-profile EFF leader walks away without legal restrictions, closing the chapter on a politically charged dispute that had threatened to drag on for months.
