McKenzie defends salary amid criticism over delayed Joshlin Smith Foundation launch

Patriotic Alliance (PA) leader and Minister of Arts, Sports and Culture Gayton McKenzie says although the Joshlin Smith Foundation has not yet been established, he has kept his promise to donate his parliamentary salary.

In June, McKenzie pledged to donate his entire salary to the Joshlin Smith Foundation for missing children.

McKenzie was responding to debates surrounding his parliamentary salary and perks. This as some accused him of wanting a ministerial job for the benefits.

“When white people enter parliament, there is never talk about perks and salaries. I currently earn more from my investments per month,” said McKenzie on social media at the time.

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“I will donate 100% of my parliamentary salary to the Joslin Smith Foundation for missing children.”

Joshlin went missing from her Middelpos home in Saldanha, Western Cape, earlier this year.

Joshlin’s mother Kelly Smith, her boyfriend Jacquen “Boeta” Appolis, Stevano van Rhyn, and Lourentia Lombaard were arrested and charged with human trafficking and kidnapping.

Joshlin Smith Foundation launch

Months later, the foundation has yet to be launched, and McKenzie has faced criticism and accusations of using the little girl’s name for his party’s campaign.

On Sunday, McKenzie admitted the foundation had not yet been set up.

“The Joshlin Smith Foundation does not yet exist because we want to make sure we get it right and don’t just do it to please members of other political parties who think this matter has anything to do with them,” McKenzie explained.

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“It is a private, personal matter relating to my own funds and what I choose to do with my own money. Rushing the creation of any foundation would be a mistake, and the fact that it has not yet been registered does not mean I have gone back on my commitment not to benefit from my ministerial salary.”

“We will continue to use the money to do good, with or without a foundation. Once the foundation is set up, we will ensure it enhances the good work being done, not distracts from it.”

“When selecting directors, we need the right people to ensure the foundation and its work can outlive me.”

“I have funded the search for Joshlin from the day I became aware of it and have always said we will never stop looking for Joshlin, despite the growing hopelessness that most of us feel about her case.”

‘Let’s be clear’

McKenzie confirmed he has been donating his salary to other organisations and causes until the foundation is set up. He added that his charitable work began long before he became a minister.

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“I have used the salary to fund causes close to my heart, and the money has truly been making a difference. I have not used a cent for myself, nor do I intend to. Let’s be clear on that,” McKenzie said.

“I have donated to charity regularly over the past two decades, and that won’t stop now. I’ll give to charity until my last breath. I’m grateful that my ministerial role allows me to reach more people and do even more good than before. That will only continue and increase.”

‘Relax,’ McKenzie tells critics

McKenzie criticised his detractors for scrutinising his salary, telling them to “take a deep breath and relax.”

“I am not stealing my own salary from anyone, people.”

Among other initiatives, McKenzie has funded spinning events nationwide, which he says act as a “powerful incentive to keep young people out of crime, as we have seen that crime drops when spinning events are held.”

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He has also contributed to the Cheslin Kolbe Charity Auction, Kagiso Art Gallery and Heatherdale Secondary School.

He urged the  Democratic Alliance (DA) to focus on its own governance and pressing issues, including crime in the Western Cape.

DA Member of Parliament Liam Jacobs has been a vocal critic of the minister on social media. He has accused the minister of lying about the foundation.