The state has been indifferent on the issue of illegal foreign immigrants for the longest time.
The government adopted a wait-and-see stance until matters got out of hand.
In the early 2000s, SA experienced “xenophobic” attacks.
There were signs way before the actual attacks that something was brewing and the state typically looked the other way.
Quite frankly, we have a government that reacts to issues when they reach crisis point.
The current “xenophobic” attacks against African foreign nationals are not new and the concomitant response of the government is also not new either.
The “family meeting” called by President Cyril Ramaphosa last week did not leave me mesmerised in terms of substance.
It was a rehash of what ordinarily needed to be done in relation to the perennial issue of illegal foreigners.
It is trite that SA is grappling with taking care of the socioeconomic daily realities of its citizens. This country is under siege.
Criminality permeates all spaces of governance and the private sector.
Corruption has become the name of the game.
We continue to witness the pervasive rot in the security cluster which is supposed to protect us but steals from citizenry.
The picture that emerges from the Madlanga commission sends shivers down our collective spine as a nation.
SA is part of the global community and typically will host people from other jurisdictions and the same is true for our own people to be hosted by the many other countries.
Immigration is a world phenomenon. The movement of Africans between African countries is not a taboo.
This movement across borders is regulated by immigration laws that are obligatory.
The state has a constitutional obligation to provide services to its citizens, especially the vulnerable.
Those who contribute to the tax revenue enable the state to honour its obligation towards the vulnerable.
The economy of SA is not doing well and this has been the case for a long time now.
Unemployment has a black face and the youth bears the brunt of the economic status quo. Citizens have to contend with scarce resources.
If the state reneges on its constitutional imperatives and this is coupled with porous borders, then we can brace ourselves for a crisis of unparalleled proportions.
One needs to take into account all these factors when dealing with the current illegal immigrants issue.
The environment is enabling what we are witnessing.
It is common cause that SA’s resources are over-stretched because there is a deficit between what is available and what is needed.
The corruption pandemic is not making things easier, either.
This cuts across government institutions that are under the stranglehold of rogue elements.
The crisis is deeper than meets the eye. This is the price to pay for waiting for things to get to the crisis point before acting.
The political blame game will not turn things around. Political mudslinging doesn’t assist the cause.
Politicians are in the business of scoring points amid a ticking time bomb.
They tend to adopt “a holier-than-thou” attitude in relation to their political adversaries — a cheap stance quite frankly.
I can already hear the retort that ‘it’s inherently the nature of the game’. That’s not it.
Civil society has a duty to make its voice heard every time the political elites abdicate their electoral stewardship obligations.
Once their political egos get the better of them, people must reclaim their power to govern.
No amount of scapegoating will address our deep socioeconomic realities.
It’s about time we tapped into our innate sense of agency to deal decisively with our nagging issues or we shall have no country to talk about. Our agency is needed as in yesterday.
- Lindani Ntenteni is from Ginsberg and writes in his personal capacity.
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