ActionSA MP Dereleen James has opened a criminal case of intimidation against Minister Gayton McKenzie, who hit back with an ethics complaint.
Image: Ayanda Ndamane/ Independent Newspapers
ACTIONSA MP Dereleen James has lodged a case of intimidation against Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie following a series of alleged intimidation tactics and threats against her.
This comes after McKenzie's comments during a Facebook Live broadcast on Sunday.
“Let Dereleen and Kurt have a good time with my name. A very good time. Let them have a good time with my name. It’s okay.
“'Die pad is lank. The road is long. I am 24/7 with security. Outside my house now, there’s security. So I want to put it out here,” the minister said.
Speaking outside the Cape Town Central police station, James said she felt exposed and threatened by McKenzie's remarks.
James said: “I feel intimidated. No one can dispute my reality when a minister takes to social media platforms and says I have security; it tells the entire world that he has security, exposing me.”
James said the comments came amid her work investigating allegations involving Patriotic Alliance (PA) president McKenzie and his deputy president, Kenny Kunene, linked to drug cartels.
She added: “He knows that we have proven allegations against him and his deputy president at the homes of drug cartels.
“I am meant to probe that. I am not sure why people think that because we are coloured, we should not hold each other accountable.”
James described the intimidation as evident, explaining that members of the PA have been allegedly linked to drug cartels in the Western Cape.
She said: “We’re not saying it’s true, but we’re saying we are going to probe those allegations.”
Meanwhile, the Patriotic Alliance has lodged a formal complaint against James with Parliament’s Joint Committee on Ethics and Members’ Interests.
'THREAT': Gayton McKenzie
Image: Facebook
According to PA spokesperson Steve Motale, the complaint, submitted by McKenzie, argues that James mischaracterised his remarks and created a false narrative of threat and intimidation.
Motale said McKenzie’s comments, including references to his security detail and the phrase “Die pad is lank,” were intended to highlight the implausibility of the drug-dealing allegations against him, not to threaten James.
Motale said: “This is not a misunderstanding. It is a pattern.
“He referred to his continuous security presence for one reason only: to demonstrate the practical impossibility of the allegations being made against him.”
Cape Times