Threadbare African states feed SA xenophobia
LEADERS in Africa should desist from blaming the past for all problems characterising their societies.
It is understandable that the legacies of the past will take time to be resolved.
African leaders should pause, reflect and find a workable solution to post-independence challenges.
In the main, the challenge revolves around the distribution of resources and governance.
Astonishingly, inequalities in the post-independence era have reached alarming proportions. This resulted in vast numbers of people leaving their countries searching for better opportunities elsewhere.
Intellectuals, entrepreneurs, and people with skills, knowledge and expertise, who could have been used to grow the economy, migrated to other countries due to the intolerant conditions under which they lived.
African immigrants are found all over the globe, settled in other countries, in many instances, against their will. The motherland nostalgia has gradually diminished and dissipated.
When South Africa was an unfree country, it was not vulnerable to the influx of foreign African nationals.
The situation then was extremely hostile and could not have welcomed them. Europe and other parts of the world were their preferred destinations for greener pastures and political asylum.
The influx of African people to other parts of the world at some point caused xenophobic tensions. This usually raised its ugly head more especially during times of economic meltdown.
The advent of freedom in South Africa was perceived by foreign nationals as an opportunity for economic advancement and political asylum. They migrated to South Africa in droves. Some were legally processed and some bypassed legal channels.
With the majority of South Africans still trapped in abject poverty, the presence of foreign nationals was seen by some as a threat to their livelihood.
This resulted in growing resentment and hostile attitudes towards foreign nationals. Job-shedding and the sluggish performance of the economy, poverty-stricken youth in the townships and high levels of unemployment exacerbated this resentment.
Undoubtedly, this has directly contributed to the outbreak of xenophobic attacks on foreign nationals.
The lack of entrepreneurial culture in South Africa and the lack of support for emerging black entrepreneurs made it difficult for certain people to compete with foreign nationals armed with entrepreneurial skills.
Foreign nationals interviewed contended that they would not have turned their backs on their countries of origin if political intolerance and persecutions were not prevalent.
Africa is well-endowed with natural and mineral resources and can feed its whole populace.
Alarmingly, the majority of people in Africa live below the poverty line, dying from curable and incurable diseases. Illiteracy rates are high, democracy is fragile, and many go to bed on empty stomachs.
Certain African leaders should get their acts together in order to reverse the influx of their people into other countries.
People should not be compelled through acts of terror and violence to flee their countries.
Leaders who were involved in the gross violation of human rights should be held accountable for their callous actions.