ActionSA’s Dereleen James Files Criminal Charges Against Gayton McKenzie Over Alleged Cartel Intimidation
ActionSA Member of Parliament Dereleen James has formally laid criminal charges against South African Minister Gayton McKenzie, alleging a campaign of intimidation following her investigation into purported ties between Patriotic Alliance leadership and the "Big 5" drug cartel.
Delicious Mathuthu 
Cape Town - In a dramatic escalation of political tensions in South Africa, ActionSA Member of Parliament Dereleen James says he will today, Tuesday March 24, file criminal charges against the Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie at the Cape Town Central Police Station.
The charges stem from what ActionSA describes as a series of targeted intimidation tactics and threats directed at James.
The party says the threats were spurred by James’s aggressive probing during an Ad-hoc Committee meeting regarding alleged links between the leadership of Mackenzie's party, the Patriotic Alliance (PA) and Katiso Molefe, an individual identified as a suspected member of the notorious "Big 5" drug cartel.
ActionSA National Communications Director, Matthew George, stated that the party views the Minister’s conduct as a "direct attack" on an elected public representative who was performing her constitutional duty to investigate the criminal capture of state institutions.
"We believe that such conduct must be addressed in accordance with the law," George said.
"This is about protecting the ability of MPs to expose criminal influence without fear of retribution or physical threats," he said.
Legislator James has been a vocal advocate for dismantling drug syndicates, while Minister McKenzie of the Patriotic Alliance, has previously dismissed allegations of cartel links as politically motivated character assassination.
The filing of these charges is expected to trigger a formal police investigation and could potentially lead to parliamentary ethics committee reviews, further straining the relationship between ActionSA and the Patriotic Alliance in the National Assembly.
