Gayton McKenzie

Gayton McKenzie is a South African businessman, motivational speaker, and President of the Patriotic Alliance political party.

Politics

McKenzie founded the Patriotic Alliance political party on the 30 November 2013, and became the parties first president. McKenzie along with Kunene have become known for using open letters to provoke political debate, cause controversy and attract attention. Kunene left the EFF months after its formation before helping to launch the PA.

At the end of April 2014, just more than a week before the elections of May 7, McKenzie wrote a highly critical open letter to EFF president Julius Malema, which gained widespread attention. In the letter and in subsequent interviews, McKenzie referred to Malema as the "biggest threat facing South Africa". This was based partly on the EFF's policies on land expropriation and nationalisation. The primary criticism, however, was focused on the character of Malema himself, whom he accused of not being a real revolutionary, a "false prophet" whose promises would take South Africa to civil war and someone who had "stolen" significant amounts of public money during his political ascent. Malema dismissed the letter as predictable rhetoric prior to an election.