ANC Youth League president Julius Malema has issued a grovelling apology to President Jacob Zuma and the ANC for damaging the image of the ruling party.

And although the ANC's national disciplinary committee cleared him of the main charges levelled against him, Malema was still sentenced to attend anger management classes and must pay a R10000 fine that will go towards a youth development project of Luthuli House's choice.

The firebrand youth president was also forced to issue a public apology for sowing disunity within ANC ranks as well as attend "a political school".

The NDC, chaired by Deputy Science and Technology Minister Derek Hanekom, had to drop three of the charges originally laid against Malema by the ruling party after finding that they had been "irregular" and contaminated.

Malema's legal representatives at the hearing, who included ANC treasurer Mathews Phosa and attorney Themba Langa, had argued that the charges were in violation of the party's constitution as they were drawn up by secretary-general Gwede Mantashe - and not the case's "national presenter" (prosecutor), Uriel Abrahmse.

However, realising the embarrassing political implications of letting Malema walk scot-free, the NDC and his representatives agreed that he would plead guilty to a reformulated charge of contravening the ANC's constitution by "behaving in such a way as to provoke serious divisions or a breakdown of the unity of the organisation".

This relates to remarks he made at a controversial ANC Youth League conference in Limpopo on April 11, in which he accused Zuma of being worse than former president Thabo Mbeki for publicly chastising him.

In his apology, Malema said: "I, Julius Malema, apologise to the president of the ANC and the Republic, comrade Jacob Zuma, and to the membership of the ANC and the public in general for the statements and utterances that I made... implying that the ANC Youth League has taken a position against the president of the ANC.

"I accept that these statements had the effect of undermining the stature of the president of the ANC and of the Republic. It further may have had the effect of undermining the confidence of our people in the leadership of the ANC and of creating serious divisions and breakdown of unity in the organisation."

Malema added: "I make this apology unconditionally as I accept that as a leader of the ANC and of the youth league my conduct and public utterances should at all times reflect respect and restraint. I accept one of the key principles of congress leadership ... that 'an abiding quality of leadership is to learn from mistakes, to appreciate weaknesses and to correct them'."

As part of his sentence, Malema will "attend programmes on effective leadership communication and anger management".

According to the ANC, three of the charges were dropped after Malema entered into a plea-bargain agreement, but an insider who was at the hearing told The Times: "They were dropped at the insistence of Malema's team."

Malema was hauled before the disciplinary committee following his controversial trip to Zimbabwe, where he declared the ANC's support for president Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF, as well as his decision to defy ANC instructions not to sing racially divisive struggle songs and comment about the murder of right-wing extremist Eugene Terre Blanche.

Malema also stood accused of bringing the ruling party into disrepute by verbally abusing a BBC journalist at a press conference last month.

Last night, Hanekom said if Malema was found guilty of the same offence within the next two years his membership of the ANC "shall be summarily suspended, for a period to be determined by the NDC".

By The Times (SA)