Patriotic Alliance (PA) leader and reformed prisoner Gayton McKenzie promised that as mayor of the Karoo he would perform miracles. He has achieved what most deemed impossible and is now setting his sights on becoming the president of South Africa in 2024.
Said the PA leader in a wide-ranging interview with Sunday World: “I will be resigning in April to go and canvas the whole country to vote for me to become president of South Africa in 2024, I will be visiting each and every place in South Africa.”
The Central Karoo District mayor said he was proud of his achievements this past year, with all the development in the area coining the name “Dubai West”.
He stayed true to his word when he said he does not want a salary or state car, and that has been the case since his election in April.
He created jobs for the locals as they assisted in fixing the Karoo’s swimming pools, which he hopes will produce future swimming champions.
The five pools that were identified were in a derelict state and temperatures in the Karoo reach up to 40 degrees. McKenzie said that alongside his team he aimed to at least fix four of the swimming pools without any financial assistance from the municipality.
“We have one that we will fix next year. This goal was one of the most comforting goals, to see the smile on the adults and children’s faces in the Karoo,” he said.
A total of six factories have also been opened, and jobs created in that process. Mckenzie said: “The one factory closed, and immediately a new entrepreneur took up the challenge, and will reopen it.”
“We have managed to attract major investors to invest in a logistics hub, flips housing and a hospital in the area.”
Mckenzie also installed the first solar energy panels as part of Central Karoo’s energy programme, eradicated pit latrines and had prisoners assist in rebuilding homes of gender-based violence victims.
He also touched on the issue of paying Eskom half of the R64million owed by the municipality.
McKenzie said: “We have taken over a bankrupt municipality that was put under a financial recovery plan by the province, after paying the debt, we never touched our overdraft, and we did not skip an Eskom payment.”
He also shared the goals he wants to achieve in the next four months
“Bring clean water to people of Leeu Gamka. Attract investment for the following projects: building of an airport, building of a civic centre, building of low-cost houses, building of five solar plants, building of a golf estate, building of a new living estate and building of a new resort.”
McKenzie assured that the above-mentioned will secure jobs in the district.
He concluded by saying: “The majority of people are happy with the progress they see in Central Karoo, few are unhappy, you cannot make everyone happy. We have huge challenges, bureaucratic red tape is a huge problem in government, but we shall overcome our challenges.”
McKenzie is also confident that he can solve Eskom’s loadshedding crisis.
“I have put my name up as a possible CEO, the chances of that happening is basically zero because of my political affiliation, but this is my seven steps I would suggest to fix Eskom,” reads part of his social media post.
See his “solutions” here:
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