South Africa has become a living nightmare – we need something new

By: Gayton McKenzie

I have been closely following the watershed invite by the leader of the Democratic Alliance, John Steenhuisen. I call it a watershed because if successfully executed, it will be spoken about for years to come and used by other countries as an example.

I have observed a lot of criticism of the Moonshot Pact by other parties. The Patriotic Alliance will take a wait-and-see approach.

We will see if parties including our party, the PA, can truly put past differences, views and perceptions aside for the greater South African dream. It’s a dream worth fighting for, because for most the country has become a living nightmare.

Our party has been accused by many of keeping the ANC in power, while others have accused us of keeping the DA in power during the many times we voted for them to the detriment of the ANC.

This is not a lecture, it is country duty. We have given the ANC nearly 30 years and we now have more than 18 million people on welfare grants.

We need something new, but to get there will require vision, humility, firmness and fairness.

Let’s see if John Steenhuisen has what it takes to form part of such a vision.

The PA shall join such a pact if we see a genuine change from what we have seen in the past and we will also genuinely make an effort to soften or alter some of our actions and attitudes that make others feel uncomfortable or distrusting of us.

*Gayton Mckenzie is President of the Patriotic Alliance