LOCAL ELECTIONS 2026: Gayton McKenzie promises debt write-offs, ‘Abahambe’ crackdown in Nelson Mandela Bay

With the 2026 local elections approaching, PA leader Gayton McKenzie says voters should give his party five years to govern Nelson Mandela Bay, promising a fresh approach to the metro’s debt, jobs, services and immigration.

Patriotic Alliance mayoral hopeful Bradley Murray, a former Nelson Mandela Bay mayoral committee member responsible for roads and transport, has sworn to write off municipal debt for households with properties worth R1-million or less, and promised a hardline crackdown on foreign-owned shops should his party take control of the metro.

Murray and PA leader and Sport, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie launched his mayoral campaign at Gqeberha’s Feather Market Centre on Monday evening, boasting that the party had been able to draw a packed hall of supporters on a Monday night.

McKenzie said Murray was the best man to run City Hall because “he had the insight to see all the mistakes of the two mayors that came before him”.

“What is happening to the people of Nelson Mandela Bay is really an injustice. The people of Nelson Mandela Bay have given their ANC mayor a chance. They’ve given their DA mayor a chance. Still, their lives have not changed,” McKenzie said.

He added that they were “not asking for 30 years that you gave the ANC. We’re not asking for 20 years that you gave the DA. We’re asking for five years. Give the PA five years and you'll see change like you’ve never seen before.”

One of Murray’s biggest promises was to write off municipal debt for households whose properties were valued at R1-million or less.

He blamed the municipality’s billing system for what he described as widespread incorrect debt, saying the problem had persisted for about five years.

“We are saying, allow the system to correct it, but write off the debt of everybody that has a property worth R1-million and less,” he said. “We’re not talking about the rich people here. We’re talking about the average people that struggles.”

McKenzie said that “he must write off the debt of everybody. We must start on an absolutely clean slate.”

The proposal comes as the metro grapples with a mounting debt burden. Outstanding municipal debt stood at R23.42-billion at the end of April, with households accounting for R20.35-billion of the total.

Murray also put immigration and foreign-owned businesses at the centre of his campaign, invoking the PA’s “Abahambe” slogan.

“The foreign shops are going to suffer under a PA government,” he said. “We’re going to tackle that issue every single day. They’re going to feel us.”

He identified Durban Road in Korsten, Gqeberha, as “Ground Zero with Abahambe”. The road is known for having a host of foreign-owned shops.