Defiant Kenny Kunene’s remarks on migrants receive backlash

The Deputy President of the Patriotic Alliance Kenny Kunene’s remarks that illegal miners deserved to die like rats underground and a post on X, suggesting that zama zamas would be hanged under a PA administration have been slammed as hypocritical.

Kunene’s comments were in reaction to the end of the standoff between the police and illegal miners at a Stilfontein mine, in the North West, last week – which saw 246 illegal miners being rescued and at least 87 bodies brought to the surface.

Political Analyst, Lesego More, says the PA leader is the last person to suggest such, considering that he is an ex-convict whose rights were respected, and was treated with humility during his rehabilitation process.

“With Kenny Kunene being a person who was previously on the wrong side of the law, one would then ask themselves that if he is so big now on corporal punishment, that let whoever commits crime die, let whoever takes from society go to hell, one then has to ask the question: Had the criminal justice been that punitive when he was paying for his crimes, would he be as reformed as he is today? Because at some point, he also committed his crimes, he took from people, and he was treated with dignity. There was an observation of his own rights, when he went through his process of rehabilitation,” remarks More.

While the PA based its May 29 election campaign on the sentiments of many South Africans who have been calling for the mass deportation of illegal migrants, More believes that Kunene is however misrepresenting the party’s stance on the matter.

“This, in my opinion, is Kenny Kunene wanting to posture the Patriotic Alliance as the party that is anti-illegal migrants, that is completely opposed to people coming outside South Africa to pursue economic opportunities within SA,” explains More.

“These sentiments were basically a political grand standing from Kenny Kunene wanting to show PA as this party that has a no-nonsense approach to illegal immigration and wanting to paint everyone as being too soft on the issue.”

Basic Education Minister, Siviwe Gwarube, has also slammed the PA’s deputy president, saying the history of South Africa should make people circumspect about how they treat others – regardless of their legal status.

This is absolutely despicable, Kenny.

There’s no way we can speak about human beings in this way. Our history as a country and as black South Africans should certainly make us circumspect about how we treat others. Regardless of their legal status.

A slaughter house? For… https://t.co/hAhPFzOFdh

— Siviwe Gwarube (@Siviwe_G) January 19, 2025

The EFF has also fired a salvo at Kunene, threating to haul him to the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC).

Julius Malema’s party further vowed to approach the Johannesburg City’s Ethics Committee to impose sanctions on the MMC for Transport.

It believes his comments as bear the hallmarks of sadistic and pathological commitment to dehumanisation.

Kunene has, however, hit back at the red berets, branding Malema as a rascal and an enemy of South Africans, who protects illegal migrants.

He says he won’t back down from his party’s views that undocumented migrants should be deported and those who steal South Africa’s wealth be hanged.

Written by Odirile Rabolao