Gayton McKenzie, the leader of the Patriotic Alliance (PA), has exposed a shocking attempt to bribe him and his party to withdraw from the Western Cape elections. In a viral TikTok video, McKenzie revealed that he was offered 200 million rand by billionaire businessman Rob Hersov, founder of the Invest Africa platform and the Cape Independence Advocacy Group (CIAG).
According to McKenzie, the offer was made in July 2023, when Hersov invited him to a meeting at his private jet hangar in Lanseria. There, Hersov presented him with a contract that stipulated that the PA would not contest the Western Cape elections, and would instead focus on other provinces. In exchange, Hersov would donate 200 million rand to the PA’s campaign fund.
McKenzie said he was shocked and insulted by the offer, which he saw as an attempt to undermine democracy and the will of the people. He said he immediately rejected the proposal and consulted with the PA’s National Executive Committee (NEC), which unanimously agreed to decline the offer and expose it to the public.
McKenzie also said that this was not the only instance of the business community trying to influence the PA’s political strategy. He recounted another meeting that took place in Stellenbosch in August 2023, where he met with several prominent business figures who expressed their interest in supporting the PA financially. However, they also had a condition: that the PA would not compete against the Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Western Cape, and would instead target the African National Congress (ANC) and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).
McKenzie said he was outraged by this condition, which he saw as a betrayal of the PA’s supporters and principles. He said he had no intention of sparing the DA, which he accused of being corrupt, arrogant, and racist. He said his goal was to challenge and surpass the DA in the Western Cape, and to become the premier of the province.
The meeting turned sour, and McKenzie said he left in a hurry, feeling threatened and disrespected. He said he later received a phone call from Hersov, who apologized for the incident and tried to persuade him to reconsider his position. Hersov also made a surprising proposition: he offered McKenzie the opportunity to become the first president of an independent Western Cape, if he would support the CIAG’s campaign for secession.
McKenzie said he was stunned by this proposition, which he dismissed as unrealistic and divisive. He said he was not interested in breaking up the country, but in building a united and prosperous South Africa for all. He said he told Hersov to stop wasting his time and money on secession, and to focus on the real issues facing the people.
McKenzie’s account also revealed that Hersov and other business figures approached other political parties, such as GOOD, Al Jama-ah, and the Cape Coloured Congress (CCC), offering them financial support and urging them not to compete against each other in the Western Cape. McKenzie said this was part of a “moonshot pact” that aimed to unite forces against the DA and the ANC, and to create a coalition government in the province.
McKenzie said he was not interested in joining this pact, which he saw as a scheme to manipulate the voters and the electoral system. He said he was confident that the PA would win the majority of the votes in the Western Cape, and that he would not compromise his vision or his integrity for any amount of money or power. He said he was ready to face the DA and the ANC head-on, and to prove that the PA was the best alternative for the people.
Hersov confirmed this in a video expressing that if the ANC remains in power whether from an outright majority or with support from the EFF, Cape Independence should be set.
