McKenzie Says He Will Resign if Suspended Over Jermaine Prim’s Claims As MK Party Wants Action Taken

• Gayton McKenzie has discussed the allegations made against him by Jermaine Prim, an inmate at Kgoši Mampuru II Correctional Centre
• The Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture also discussed what he would do if President Cyril Ramaphosa were to suspend him
• The uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party called on the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry to investigate the allegations against McKenzie

Byron Pillay, a Briefly News journalist, has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He worked as a newspaper journalist for 10 years before transitioning to online.

GAUTENG – Patriotic Alliance leader, Gayton McKenzie, has again denied the allegations against him, which were made by Jermaine Prim.

Prim, an inmate at Kgoši Mampuru II Correctional Centre, recently claimed that McKenzie was involved in the drug trade and was a proxy of the Big 5.

McKenzie, the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, has rejected the allegations, saying that Prim was a madman with no proof.

Read also

Jermaine Prim claims alleged Big 5 cartel member Katiso Molefe supplies Gayton McKenzie with drugs

What did McKenzie say?

Speaking to the media at the launch of the Cultural and Creative Industries (CCI) Clusters at Nirox Sculpture Park, Krugersdorp, McKenzie rejected the allegations made against him and criticised the media for giving Prim a platform to make them.

He also said that he would rather resign as a minister if Cyril Ramaphosa were to suspend him following the allegations, but would not hold any ill feelings towards the president.

“I’ve been appointed by the president of this country. So if he recalls me, I will thank him, and I will respect him for the time he trusted me with the portfolio,” McKenzie said.

He added that he was not like others who depended on the ministry, saying that he would never forget what Ramaphosa had done for him by appointing him as a minister.

“I will still sing his praises, even after if I am no longer a part of the Government of National Unity (GNU).”

Read also

Netizens question Gayton McKenzie's new information about Joslin Smith disappearance

He added that if he were temporarily suspended, he would rather resign, because he was doing this as a service.

McKenzie describes Prim as a madman

The minister then asked where the proof was that he was involved with the drug trade, complaining that the media believed a man who previously claimed he was the National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP).

In 2018, Prim was charged and subsequently convicted for impersonating the then-NDPP, Shaun Abrahams, while he was already incarcerated.

He posed as Abraham to try to get his charges of car theft dropped.

uMkhonto weSizwe Party wants McKenzie suspended

McKenzie made the comments about resigning if he was suspended after comments made by the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party.

The party called on President Ramaphosa to suspend the minister following the allegations. The MK Party also wants the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry to look into the allegations levelled against McKenzie. The Madlanga Commission is investigating claims of criminality, political interference and corruption within the criminal justice system.

Other stories about Prim

Read also

President Ramaphosa promises decision on General Masemola soon, South Africans debate his next move

Briefly News has reported on several articles about Prim and the allegations he made in his letter to the MP.

• Prim claimed that Cat Matlala told him he had delivered couches to President Cyril Ramaphosa's Phala Phala farm.
• Ashley Sauls slammed Parliament's Ad Hoc Committee over Prim's letter, which was produced by Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.
• The Patriotic Alliance has responded to allegations that McKenzie had links to the drug trade.

Source: Briefly News