The Federal Government has assured Nigerians residing in South Africa that all citizens who have indicated interest in returning home amid ongoing anti-migrant attacks will be evacuated before the June 30 deadline.
The assurance was given by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, in a statement issued on Thursday by her Special Assistant on Communication and New Media, Magnus Eze.
According to the minister, the administration of President Bola Tinubu remains committed to the safety and welfare of Nigerians abroad and will ensure that no willing citizen is left behind.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu disclosed that the evacuation exercise was already underway, with the first batch of 258 Nigerians successfully airlifted from South Africa.
The returnees were received by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on June 11.
She added that approximately 1,000 Nigerians had registered for evacuation from South Africa, with arrangements being finalised to bring home the remaining citizens before the deadline.
This means that more than 742 Nigerians are expected to return to Nigeria in the coming days.
The minister said President Tinubu had directed that Nigerians facing danger, harassment and intimidation in South Africa, and who had voluntarily indicated interest in returning home, should be assisted without delay.
She noted that the President remained concerned about reports of discrimination and attacks targeting Nigerians and other African migrants living in the country.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu explained that the Federal Government was continuing diplomatic engagements with South African authorities while considering other lawful options to address the situation.
She stressed that any further action by Nigeria would be guided by constitutional provisions and due legislative process.
Expressing concern over the treatment of Nigerians in South Africa, the minister said many of those affected had lived in the country for years and built families there.
“When it comes to situations like this, of course, it is necessary to be temperate and exercise caution. But when your citizens are being harassed, when your citizens are people who have spent years there, and mind you, some of them are married to South Africans and have children who have known no other home but South Africa, then it becomes a serious concern.
“Now, under these circumstances, they are asking not just Nigerians, but also their South African spouses and their children, to leave South Africa,” she added.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu also criticised what she described as the unequal treatment of Nigerians despite the significant investments of South African companies operating in Nigeria.
“As I indicated before, there are these huge conglomerates. By the way, there are over 120 South African companies operating in Nigeria.
“Nobody is asking them to provide proof of identity. Nobody is asking South African staff working there whether they are South Africans or Nigerians, and nobody is taking over their shops or businesses.
“But this is happening to Nigerians in South Africa. So, I think that at some point, we really have to review the options available to us,” she said.
She listed major South African companies operating in Nigeria, including MTN, MultiChoice, Stanbic and Protea.
The minister lamented that the activities of anti-migrant vigilante groups were damaging South Africa’s reputation across Africa and beyond.
“This is causing reputational damage, and that is quite sad because the late Madiba, Nelson Mandela – God rest his soul – worked so hard to project South Africa as the bastion of pan-Africanism.
“And in one fell swoop, these anti-migrant vigilante groups have destroyed what this man sacrificed 28 years in prison for. So, it is causing reputational damage,” she said.
She added that the growing perception of xenophobia was already affecting events and business activities in the country.
“Even within South Africa itself, people are cancelling concerts, and conferences are being called off.
“South Africa has been stained with the stigma of being a xenophobic country. This is not something I think they will be comfortable with in the long run,” she added.
