First accused Muzi Sibiya alleges harassment by prosecution in Meyiwa trial

Muzi Sibiya, the first accused in the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial, told the Pretoria High Court that he believes he is being denied a fair trial.

Testifying on Thursday, Sibiya accused the prosecution of repeatedly asking the same questions, which he said forced him to relive painful memories of alleged police assaults. “My lord, I have a problem with being asked the same question over and over again by this prosecutor,” Sibiya said during cross-examination.

He was responding to a question from state prosecutor George Baloyi, who had asked him to recall how many police vehicles were at the Vosloorus police station before the alleged assault. “I’ve already said I don’t remember how many vehicles were there.

I’m reminded of the assault by police officers, who kept asking me about Senzo Meyiwa’s death. When I told them I knew nothing, they assaulted me,” Sibiya testified. “I’m facing the same situation here in court, and I feel like I’m not getting a fair trial,” he added.

Baloyi defended his line of questioning, saying, “We have to test your evidence and ask questions, that’s the whole purpose of this process.” However, defence advocate Charles Mnisi objected, accusing the prosecution of harassing the witness.

“The witness is correct; this conduct is unlawful. It’s called badgering a witness,” Mnisi argued. “This does not test credibility because asking the same question repeatedly when the answer is already known is unfair.”