Africans shouldn’t join our xenophobic South African brothers in lunacy

South Africa's struggle with xenophobia is a deeply troubling stain on its post-Apartheid identity, a betrayal of the very principles of African unity that fueled the fight against Apartheid. As Premium Times, we observe with profound disappointment and anger the resurgence of these attacks against fellow Africans, who once stood in solidarity with us during our darkest hours.

The narrative peddled by some South Africans that foreigners are taking their jobs is a dangerous delusion, a convenient scapegoat for systemic failures. These are not the jobs South Africans aspire to or possess the skills for; they are often menial tasks that the white population, who have never relinquished economic control, do not deign to do. The true battle for economic liberation, for the return of land and resources, remains largely unfought, yet our people are incited to attack their own brethren.

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until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned…that until the colour of a man’s skin is of no more significance than the colour of his eyes; that until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all without regard to race… And until the ignoble and unhappy regimes that hold our brothers in Angola, in Mozambique and in South Africa in subhuman bondage have been toppled and destroyed…until that day, the African continent will not know peace. We Africans will fight, if necessary, and we know that we shall win, as we are confident in the victory of good over evil.

We recall Emperor Haile Selassie's powerful words at the UN, a vision of an Africa united against oppression. We remember Nigerians contributing funds and offering scholarships, a testament to Pan-Africanism in action. This current wave of xenophobia is not just an attack on fellow Africans; it is an attack on the legacy of our liberation struggle and a dangerous distraction from the real architects of our economic disempowerment. The government's response, as seen in Botswana's drastic measures, signals a continent growing weary of South Africa's internal contradictions. It is a stark reminder that solidarity, once a powerful weapon, can quickly erode when replaced by division and hate.

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When spider webs unite, they can tie up a lion