Chairman of MTN Group, Mcebisi Jonas, has delivered a scathing condemnation of rising xenophobia in South Africa, blaming the country’s immigration crisis on government failure rather than the presence of foreign nationals.
Speaking at the funeral of Zimbabwean-born activist and public servant, Thokozani Damasane, in Johannesburg, the former South African Deputy Minister of Finance said inequality, unemployment, corruption and poor governance, and not immigrants remain the country’s biggest challenges.
His remarks, which have since gained widespread attention across South Africa, are being viewed as one of the strongest public interventions a senior African business leader on the country’s recurring anti-foreigner sentiment has made.
Jonas questioned the growing calls for foreigners to leave South Africa, saying such measures would do nothing to solve the nation’s deep-rooted socio-economic problems.
“Foreigners can leave tomorrow, but inequality will remain. Unemployment will remain. Corruption will remain. Politicians concerned only about being elected and re-elected will remain,” he said.
According to him, the country’s immigration tensions stem largely from the state’s inability to manage its borders, enforce the law and deliver essential public services.
“The problem is the failure of the state. It doesn’t manage immigration. It doesn’t manage its borders. It doesn’t enforce the law. It doesn’t manage education. That is the real problem,” Jonas stated.
He warned that political actors have exploited public frustration by shifting blame to immigrants instead of addressing governance failures.
Jonas also criticised the continued use of ethnic identity in African politics, arguing that tribal divisions were largely a colonial creation designed to divide communities.
“The tribe is a product of colonial powers,” he said, adding that identity politics and ethno-nationalism have continued to fuel discrimination and violence across the continent.
He urged South Africans to reject ethnic divisions and embrace national unity and African solidarity.
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