Former President of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki has cautioned his countrymen over their persistent complaints that Nigerians and other foreigners commit all the crimes in the country.
South Africans have launched many Xenophobic attacks on Nigerians and other Africans living in their country with the notion that they have taken a major share of their economic fortunes at their expense. They have also labelled these foreigners as committing crimes in the country.
However, Mbeki, on Friday debunked these allegations and criticised South Africans for blaming other Africans for their woes when he had a conversation meeting with students and diplomats of the University of South Africa in Pretoria.
According to SABC News, the ex-President said the bulk of the crimes in South Africa are perpetrated by the natives of the country adding that the South African government can deport any foreign national engaging in crimes and also punish the South Africans found in the same scheme.
Mbeki said, “We need to walk away from the false notion that the bulk of crime in this country is caused by foreigners. It is not correct.
“The bulk of crime in this country is committed by South Africans. There are foreigners who commit crimes.
“You should arrest them and charge them. This is what we should do and avoid labelling other people.
“He reminded South Africans that several African countries assisted South Africa in attaining its independence.
“The African continent has felt, for a very long time, very, very close to this country, that it has its own responsibility to assist in the liberation of the people of South Africa.
“You take a country like Mozambique just across our border, which lost thousands and thousands of people killed because it was refusing to walk away from the support here. The same thing happened in Angola.”
