XENOPHOBIA OR RESURGENT CARNAGE OF INNOCENT IMMIGRANTS: A CAUTION NOTICE TO SOUTH AFRICANS.

XENOPHOBIA OR RESURGENT CARNAGE OF INNOCENT IMMIGRANTS: A CAUTION NOTICE TO SOUTH AFRICANS.

The archeologist and anthropologist Robert M. Adams argued for a definition of civilization as a society with functionally interrelated sets of social institutions: class stratification based on the ownership and control of production, political and religious hierarchies complementing each other in the central administration of territorially organized states. One other definition of civilization requires that a civilized people have a sense of history – meaning that the past counts in the present.

It is highly unfortunate that the South Africans forget so soon the rescue roles played by most Africans, especially Nigeria, to help them in their time of apartheid. But now that their apartheid injuries are gone, they think other Africans in South Africa should be made to suffer their recurring economic illness. Several cases of xenophobic crime started in South Africa since the year 1994, and subsequently followed by its repetitions in the year 2008, 2015, 2017, and now year 2019. If the South Africans forget history, have they forgotten that their economy benefits a lot from the Nigeria economic system, even in the face of the ongoing recessions in Nigeria? Most of us were absolutely surprised that any South Africa citizen could brutalize or kill other African fellows, let alone the Nigerians residing in South Africa. The irrational justification for the recurring xenophobic violence in South Africa has always been that Nigerians among others are taking over their employment opportunities, and also, eating deep into their economic system. If posterity is reluctantly forced to forget the positive contributions by Nigerians during the apartheid era in South Africa, what about the ongoing benefits that South Africa still enjoys from the Nigeria economy among others?

To mention few, the largest telecommunication company in Nigeria i.e. the Mobile Telephone Network (MTN), is owned by South Africa and it carts away a huge amount of money from the dwindled Nigeria economy to benefit South Africa daily. Even though the MTN business relationship between South Africa and Nigeria is presumed to be symbiotic, Peter is still majorly robbed to pay Paul in the process. You may also wish to know that the South Africans working in some branches of MTN in Nigeria have taken over a lot of graduate vacancies that ordinarily should be occupied by Nigerians, but nobody is bothered, because we tolerate foreigners so well in Nigeria with an absolute love. This situation points to the fact that the little South Africans in Nigeria are engaged in highly paid graduate jobs which even a qualified Nigerian cannot get. Yet, the South Africans are groaning that Nigerians have taken over their employments which are mostly menial in virtually all the employment phases in South Africa. Another indispensable economic benefit that South Africa enjoys from Nigeria is through their Digital Satellite Television (DStv) Company in Nigeria, which returns a jumbo pecuniary value to the economic system of South Africa. Hence, many key positions are still held by South Africans at DStv Nigeria, while the Nigerians are made the second-class executives even in their own country either directly or indirectly.

Notwithstanding, nobody cares about the high posts held by the South Africans in the Nigerian labour market because we are highly civilized in this regard.
​Some personal eye witnesses recall the time of construction of the permanent site of Shoprite at the Federal High Court road in Ibadan. The head of contractors at the site is a South African named Yappi, and, right in many people’s presence on their visits to the site one day; he was hiring and firing some sub-contractors at will without any limitation. But despite the excesses of Mr. Yappi at the site on investigations, nobody cared to attack or indict him for any immigration issue even though it was speculated that many immigration rules were bent for the man in Nigeria. Would this have been allowed in South Africa? We all know the answer, but Nigerians are still magnanimous no matter the circumstance. In addition to it, all the Shoprite Shopping Malls in Nigeria belong to South Africans.

Beyond the above, one of the ugly and disheartening antecedents was the sacrilegious diatribe by King Zulu which fomented the xenophobic violence of the year 2015, that consequently let loose the dogs of vandalism and massacre in South Africa in the same year. The government of South Africa did absolutely nothing to it then, and now, we are seeing the recurrence of similar xenophobic attacks in the year 2019. If a stringent law was enacted to severely discourage xenophobia in its entire forms since the past years, it would have never re-occurred and would even be a thing of the past. In our opinion, we want to believe that the government of South Africa is indirectly supporting xenophobia.

Otherwise, the culprits of any of the past xenophobic crimes would have been brought to book and even made to see the wrath of the law with a capital punishment. No other government in Africa would be silent over this nor even allowed any case of xenophobia. The South African government is hereby believed to be obdurate to calls for culmination of the recurring xenophobia, and so, the African Union should wade into power and set up a standard for South Africa with even a line punishment. If not, the xenophobic incidents in South Africa are enough recipes for an international war.

While we would never preach any retaliation, it is important to note that the South Africans spit on Nigeria when they kill her citizens in South Africa, having fed from Nigerian pots and even drank from her water. This notwithstanding, we are still calling on the South African government and its parliament to find a lasting solution to this dastardly act. If an enactment is already in place against this act, it should be urgently enforced to deter the further recurrence of xenophobia. We are also aware, that the parliament of Nigeria had deliberated to send some delegates to South Africa to address this issue. We hereby commend this step and recommend it to be done with a high priority considering the lives and properties involved. However, if the situation is not stemmed with the recommendations above, and the government of South Africa would still be indifferent; ACLN would advise the Nigerian government to help the vulnerable Nigerians relocate back home, and, be set to deal with South Africa with some economic policies towards its businesses operating in Nigeria. More so, the security laxity and the decay in the Nigeria economy should be equally fixed to attract the Nigerians in diaspora back into their father land at will. A stich in time saves nine! See Less

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