Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
The Federal Government has reiterated that it will continue to demand and insist on fairness and justice for all Nigerians over the xenophobic attacks in South Africa.
Chairman/CEO of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Hon Abike Dabiri-Erewa, said this in an interview with 101 Business, which she retweeted on her verified twitter handle @abikedabiri.
She described the recent vandalization and destruction of properties belonging to South African brands in the country as a step taken in the wrong direction, appealing to Nigerians to address the situation with caution.
According to her: “That’s not who we are as Nigerians. We are humane and we respect humanity. We welcome our visitors, we don’t go humiliating them. And more so, by destroying properties and looting, they are actually doing more harm to Nigerians in Nigeria than South Africans.”
Dabiri-Erewa added that peaceful and non-violent protests are a better option rather than violence as two wrongs do not make anything right. “Nothing wrong with a peaceful, non-violent protest, and the government has taken the right actions making it clear that it would not tolerate maltreatment of its citizens.”
Her call for caution came as the South African government temporarily closed its diplomatic missions in Nigeria following reprisal attacks by Nigerians triggered by the xenophobic violence in SA.
In his reaction to the development, Chief John Nnia Nwodo, President General of Ohaneze Ndigbo Worldwide described the attacks on Nigerians and others in South Africa as criminal and provocative.
According to him, “The xenophobic attacks on Nigerians and other Africans in the Republic of South Africa has been persistent, provocative and criminal. It smacks of absolute ingratitude on the part of a country Nigeria sacrificed so much for. It promotes divisive local conversations that give our government an opportunity to dramatize our unity of purpose.
“The Federal Government must be courageous enough to announce retaliatory measures that will make it clear that enough is enough. Such measures must address specific South African assets in Nigeria especially in the Communication, Oil, Banking and Aviation sectors. Not to do so will portray us as weak, encourage a reoccurrence of these dastardly attacks in the future and leave us a deeply angry and divided nation.”
He added that “Ohaneze Ndigbo Worldwide is anxious to see the Federal Government do the right thing this time around.”