What next for South African opposition firebrand Malema after his five-year prison sentence?

During the trial in KuGompo City, which is the new name for East London, Malema told the court that he had fired the shots in celebration.He has been allowed to appeal against the sentence but not the initial conviction, and until the entire process is finished, he will not go to prison.How will the appeal process work?Malema's lawyers have said he will appeal against both the conviction and sentence.Legal expert Ulrich Roux told the BBC that to challenge his conviction, he would first have to seek permission from the Eastern Cape High Court.If the high court agrees, he can then seek to overturn both sentence and conviction but the state "will most likely oppose his application", according to Roux.Malema has vowed to challenge the judgment right up to South Africa's highest court, the Constitutional Court, if necessary."If it goes all the way to the Constitutional Court, we'll most likely get a final order within four to five years' time," said Roux.Political analyst Sandile Swana told the BBC that with the appeals process likely to take several years, the EFF leader might be able to stand for re-election to parliament in 2029.Swana also noted that even if Malema's appeal ultimately failed and he is sent to prison, and then disqualified for five years, he could still stage a political comeback afterwards.South Africa's former President Jacob Zuma was handed a 15-month sentence back in 2021, meaning he was barred from becoming an MP.However, he went on to form a new party, uMkhonto weSizwe (Spear of the Nation), which he led to third place in the 2024 elections, overtaking Malema's EFF.Another analyst, Khanyi Magubane, told the BBC the sentence could even help Malema's political career, describing it as the "trump card he needs for his election campaign"."I believe this will position the EFF and Malema well. It's actually going to have unintended consequences… because he will play on the public sympathy [and] use this opportunity to continue standing his ground," she said.Malema will be looking to turn his party's fortunes around after suffering a series of setbacks in recent years, losing votes to Zuma's party. Several key leaders left the party following the 2024 elections, including party co-founder and Malema's deputy Floyd Shivambu.