Zimbabwean opposition politician Job Sikhala and his uncle were granted R10,000 ($540) bail each by a South African court on Wednesday after being arrested last week when police allegedly found explosives in their vehicle.
Sikhala, 53, and his 78-year-old uncle, Alexander Thema, were each released on R10,000 (approximately US$540) bail by the Pretoria Magistrates Court on 13 November 2025. The matter has been postponed to 3 February 2026.
South African police claim they discovered “26 blasting cartridges and 15 capped fuse connectors” inside Sikhala’s vehicle during a stop along Kgosi Mampuru Street in Pretoria on 6 November 2025.
The former Zimbabwean parliamentarian, who leads the National Democratic Working Group and previously represented the Citizens Coalition for Change in parliament, had been in custody since his arrest.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Gauteng spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana told reporters: “When the police searched the car, they found 26 units of blasting cartridges and 15 units of connector cap fuses.”
Sikhala’s legal team maintains the charges are fabricated and politically motivated, alleging a cross-border effort to silence the prominent government critic.
Born in 1972, Job “Wiwa” Sikhala has built a reputation as one of Zimbabwe’s most fearless opposition voices. A lawyer by profession and a founding member of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in 1999, he rose to prominence for his fiery speeches denouncing corruption, human rights abuses, and economic mismanagement under ZANU-PF’s rule
Over the years, he has endured dozens of politically motivated arrests, lengthy detentions without trial, and repeated charges ranging from treason to incitement to violence — none of which ever resulted in conviction.
The National Democratic Working Group has denied the explosives belonged to Sikhala, with spokesperson Silenkosi Moyo describing the incident as “suspected foul play.”
The court did not elaborate on the origins or intended use of the explosives.
The granting of bail was met with relief among Sikhala’s supporters. Journalist Hopewell Chin’ono wrote on social media platform X: “Job Sikhala and his uncle, Alexander Thema, have been granted bail, and they are expected to be released once the paperwork has been completed.”
The case has been postponed to February 3, 2026.
