PA leader Gayton McKenzie has firmly denied drug and criminal allegations, calling them politically motivated. He says claims have resurfaced around every election cycle and insists he has nothing to hide.
Image: File / Supplied
Patriotic Alliance (PA) leader Gayton McKenzie has dismissed allegations linking him to drugs and criminal networks as false and politically motivated, saying the claims resurface every election cycle.
Speaking during a Facebook Live broadcast, McKenzie said he had never met inmate Jermaine Prim and rejected claims that the two had any relationship.
He challenged Prim to undergo a lie detector test, saying they should be asked directly whether they had ever met and whether he had ever sold drugs.
“He must do a lie detector test, me and him. And they must ask him, have we ever met, and do I sell drugs, or whatever,” McKenzie said.
He also alleged that Prim had previously threatened individuals associated with him, which led to a case being opened against Prim. McKenzie said he cut ties at that point, despite later forgiving him after an apology.
“I’ve never seen him,” McKenzie said, adding that he had at one point accepted an apology from Prim “like a little brother” before distancing himself again following further alleged threats.
McKenzie emphasised that the allegations were not new, saying they had been circulating since the early 2000s and were aired again last year.
This is not a new thing; this allegation has been coming from 2002,” he said. He questioned why the issue was being raised again now.
He denied claims that Prim had funded the Patriotic Alliance, arguing that the timeline made such assertions impossible. “How can you fund something that is not there?” he said, noting that the party was only formed years after the period in question.
The Patriotic Alliance leader also rejected claims that drugs were sold on his behalf while Prim was in prison, saying he had no involvement in drug-related activities and had not visited correctional facilities since his own release.
“You can accuse me of many things, not drugs,” he said. “I hate drugs with all my heart.”
McKenzie further dismissed allegations linking him to a group referred to as the “Big Five,” saying he had never met or associated with any of the individuals mentioned. “I do not know these people I don’t hang out with those people,” he said.
He challenged Prim to provide evidence, particularly financial records, saying the claims could easily be tested.
“Bring the bank statements,” he said, adding that if such records existed, they could be verified against his own accounts.
He said that if journalists produced matching transactions and he refused to provide his own records, it could be assumed he was guilty.
He said he would pursue legal action against multiple parties, including the Minister of Correctional Services, the National Commissioner of Correctional Services, journalist Heidi Giokos in her personal capacity, her editor, and eNCA.
''We are suing them,'' said Mckenzie. He said the legal action was intended to force a full investigation into how the interview was conducted and to expose what he described as an “operation.”
Mckenzie also raised concerns about how the interview with the inmate was conducted, particularly regarding prison regulations.
“No prisoner can use a phone after 3 o’clock,” he said, adding, “You cannot talk to a prisoner without getting explicit permission,” and questioning how the communication was facilitated.
“I’m doing those things because I’ve got nothing to hide,” McKenzie said. He adding that he would make the findings of any investigation public.
McKenzie also suggested that the allegations were repeatedly raised around election periods, questioning the timing of their re-emergence. He said previous attempts to implicate him, including claims linking him to other crimes and controversial statements, had failed to gain traction.
While acknowledging his past as a convicted criminal involved in robberies, McKenzie maintained he had never been involved in drug dealing.
“I was a robber, I robbed banks. I robbed institutions. I never involved myself in things of drugs,” he said.
He added that his current focus was on business and political work, including employing former prisoners to help them reintegrate into society, and rejected suggestions that he would return to criminal activity.
“There’s nobody that says I’m a drug dealer,” McKenzie said, insisting the allegations were baseless and part of a broader agenda against him.
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