High Emotions in Court As Sibongile Mani Gets Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison for Theft of R800k NSFAS Funds

• Sibongile Mani, the former Walter Sisulu student will be spending the next five years in prison for the theft of over R800 000
• The East London Magistrate's Court refused to grant Mani a suspended sentence for actions and stated that she was not a victim
• South Africans have Mani's sentence and some people feel should have been given a warning and not a prison sentence

EAST LONDON - The East London Magistrate's Court sentenced former Walter Sisulu student Sibongile Mani to five years in prison for the theft of more than R800 000 that was erroneously deposited into her account.

At the time of the theft, NSFAS had accidentally deposited R14 million into her account instead of the R1 400 that was meant to be her monthly allowance.

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Emotions ran high in the courtroom with Mani, her family and friends crying after Magistrate Twanette Olivier stated that Mani would be serving time in prison and would not be granted a suspended sentence as per her legal team's request, according to TimesLIVE.

Oliver found that granting Mani a suspended sentence would have not been the appropriate thing to do because people Mani was not a victim in this situation.

The court has a duty to impose a fearlessly appropriate and fair sentence even if such a sentence would not satisfy public opinion,” said Oliver.

The Magistrate did, however, take into consideration that this is Mani's first conviction and that is why she was granted a sentence of five years.

Oliver highlighted that Mani, over a period of 73 days tried to spend as much as possible before the mistake was detected. She also noted that Mani did not spend the money on essential items but rather spurlged it on things like booze, according to News24.

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Oliver also stated that she took into consideration that if the funds that were spurlged by Mani were not paid by IntelliMali, the firm that was responsible for the distribution of NSFAS funds, over 500 students who rely on NSFAS would have been disadvantaged.

South Africans raise opposing views on Sibongile Mani's sentence

@MalvinSiziba said:

"This is unfair on a serious note, she didn’t steal it was given to her and what about the person who did the transaction ‍♂️"

@cachalia said:

"She spent 800,000..and then the rest was returned…jail time?? People have done worse and have got off scot-free."

@clutchshot_ said:

"Damn if she was smart she should've dumped all that money into crypto and fled the country. 5 years for 800k is pretty rough."

@givenrathogwa said:

"And what happened to those who accidentally sent the money to her account? continuing with tenders and living as normal right?"

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@iamhimpix said:

"Justice for some is not justice at all. This is bad for a black girl, a warning would be fair enough. I will persuade the minister of justice and correctional services to appeal this sentence. Kaakisto lento."

NSFAS' Sibongile Mani persecuted "For being black and poor", student's supporters claim

Briefly News previously reported that Sibongile Mani, the Walter Sisulu University (WSU) student at the centre of an erroneous R14 million National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) payment, was back in the East London Magistrate's Court on Tuesday.

Mani was found guilty of theft after using more than R800 000 of the funds mistakenly deposited into her account by the financial aid scheme in 2017, SABC News reported.

Hundreds of mostly WSU students assembled near the court precinct in a show of support for Mani. Her supporters were vocal in their claims that the convicted student was being oppressed because she is black and from a poor background.

Source: Briefly News