What happened to Joslin? Gayton remains silent on missing girl
Gayton McKenzie was notably silent on the first anniversary of Joslin Smith’s disappearance, despite pledging to start a foundation…
Although Gayton McKenzie vowed to establish a foundation in her honor, he has remained silent on the first anniversary of Joslin Smith’s disappearance.
The Patriotic Alliance leader – now the Minister of Sport, Art, and Culture – previously vowed to find the missing Saldanha Bay girl, even if it means digging into his own pockets.
Recently, Gayton has courted controversy over his views on US President Donald Trump and his support for the Afrikaner community.
GAYTON MCKENZIE IS MUM ABOUT MISSING GIRL’S DISAPPEARANCE
On his social media profiles, Gayton McKenzie was visibly silent on the first anniversary of Joslin Smith’s disappearance. The now 7-year-old girl went missing from her home outside her tin shack in the Middelpos informal settlement in Diazville, Saldanha Bay.
Gayton is known for his outspoken tweets and Facebook Lives, which he broadcasts to his legion of followers. However, there was no post commemorating Joslin’s disappearance or an update on what has been done in her honour.
The Minister of Sport, Art, and Culture launched an active search funded by himself to find the green-eyed girl after her disappearance last year. At the time he was accused his position of influence potential voters in last year’s general elections.
Since taking up a ministerial role, he also pledged to donate his salary to the Joslin Smith Foundation, which he would establish to help find missing children in South Africa.
IS THERE A JOSLIN SMITH FOUNDATION?
Many members of the public have questioned on social media whether Gayton McKenzie has put his money where his mouth is.
The last time Gayton McKenzie referred to the Joslin Smith Foundation was in a tweet in July last year. In it, he revealed that his lawyers were “in the final stages of registering the foundation.”
A month earlier, Gayton revealed that he would donate “100%” of his salary to the foundation, which he would establish to raise awareness of missing children in the country.
However, according to Minister of Social Development Sisi Tolashe, no such foundation exists.
When asked by DA MP Liam Chad Jacobs in a parliamentary sitting last year if Gayton’s foundation had been registered and was operational, Tolashe said: “The Joslin Smith Foundation is not registered as a non-profit organisation (NPO) in terms of sections 13 NPO Act and has not submitted any application for registration in terms of the Act administered by the Department of Social Development.”
A quick search on the department’s public database also revealed that no such foundation currently exists.
Anti-gender-based violence activists Women For Change tweeted on Joslin’s anniversary: “So, Minister of Arts, Sports, and Culture… A simple question: Where did the money go?”
WHO HAS HE DONATED HIS SALARY TO?
In November, Gayton McKenzie posted a list of beneficiaries to whom he had donated his salary. The list included figures in sports, the arts, and culture.
One was Springbok Cheslin Kolbe, who had established a foundation to assist underprivileged children. Another was actor Roderick Japhta, who revealed that he was experiencing financial difficulties.
Gayton also pledged to several car spinning initiatives, which he has previously advocated for.
Gayton added regarding Joslin: “I have funded the search from the day I became aware of it. And have always said we will never stop looking for Joslin, despite the increasing hopelessness that most of us have come to feel about her case.”