Laide Raheem, Abeokuta

In what appears to be his first reaction on the xenophobic attacks in South Africa, former Nigerian President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, has urged countries whose citizens were affected to table appropriate motions at the African Union (AU).

He also urged them to consider other measures, if the situation was allowed to continue.

Obasanjo, who responded to the xenophobic crisis through a letter to the President of the Inkatha Freedom Party, Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi, yesterday, said it was a great disservice to the continent and the black race for any African country to encourage or allow or not seriously sanction xenophobia against Africans in their country.

The former President, responding to Buthelezi’s letter, dated September 11, which was made available to newsmen through his special assistant on media, Kehinde Akinyemi, in Abeokuta, declared that there was “need for fence-mending, reconciliation and wound-binding between South Africa and the countries whose citizens have been victims of xenophobia and afrophobia in South Africa.

“As a suggestion, South Africa should send emissaries to the countries concerned to explain, apologise and agree on the way forward for mutual understanding, accommodation, reconciliation, and binding the wounds to promote unity, concord, and brotherhood in Africa.”

Obasanjo opined that repatriation of Nigerians from South Africa was not a permanent solution but a palliative, neither was revenge a desirable solution.

“Mutual understanding and acknowledgement of what needs to be done on all sides is imperative, and getting down to doing them is the solution that will serve Nigeria and South Africa and indeed Africa well, particularly in this era of African Continental Free Trade Area opportunities,” he said.

He added that Nigeria and South Africa must stand together to champion the African cause and jointly shepherd African development, unity, cooperation, security, and progress to make the 21st Century Africa’s century.

While expressing the belief that Africans living in any part of Africa must be treated as brothers and friends, the former President added that “if they commit any crime, they should be treated like citizens of that country will be treated when they commit crime, which will mean applying judicial process.”

He chided the South African police for allegedly standing aloof, watching miscreants and criminals committing crimes against fellow human beings, and declared such attitudes either connote incompetence or collusion on the part of the police.

He charged the South African police and other law enforcement agencies to uphold the letters and spirit of the Constitution of South Africa.

Obasanjo said the belief being touted that xenophobia and eliminating foreigners, especially other Africans, would give South Africans jobs was a fallacy, pointing out xenophobia would rather make investment in South Africa a little bit more difficult, which would lead to lack of job creation and loss of existing jobs