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The President of the Nigerian Union in South Africa, Dr. Smart Nwobi, has condemned the alleged extrajudicial killing and brutalisation of Nigerians by South African law enforcement officers, insisting that police have no legal or moral right to kill suspects merely because they are accused of committing crimes.
Nwobi made the remarks while reacting to comments by South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, who acknowledged concerns about criminal activities involving some foreign nationals, including Nigerians.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE News, Nwobi stressed that while individuals found guilty of criminal offences should face the full weight of the law, criminal acts committed by a few Nigerians should not be used to stigmatise the entire Nigerian community in South Africa.
“Indeed, crime, no nationality is imbued with crime,” he said.
He noted that every country has a responsibility to enforce its laws but warned against profiling Nigerians because of the actions of a handful of offenders.
“In South Africa, there’s a firm law regarding intolerance of crime. Inasmuch as the government of South Africa has some few individuals from Nigeria that commit certain kinds of crimes, that should not be a kind of a rubber stamp or a brush to be painted on all Nigerians that are living in South Africa legally and conducting their businesses.”
According to him, law enforcement agencies should investigate criminal allegations professionally and prosecute offenders through the courts rather than resorting to violence.
“Yes, the law should take its course. Those that are found wanting on the wrong side of the law, the law should be able to take its course.”
He added that the responsibility of the police is to enforce the law, not to carry out unlawful executions.
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“It is the duty of the law enforcement of any nation to actually bring those perpetrators to book. And that does not give law enforcement officers the authority to brutalize anyone that is said to be found on the wrong side of the law.”
Nwobi further argued that crime is not peculiar to Nigerians, noting that South Africans and citizens of other countries also engage in criminal activities.
“It’s not only Nigerians that commit crime. Locals also commit crime. People of other nations commit crime. However, in any country, it is the duty of law enforcement to enforce the laws of those nations.”
He maintained that regardless of the allegations against any suspect, security agencies must respect the rule of law and due process.
“Regardless of what it’s been alleged that anyone has done, it should not give the police the right to kill and maim and extrajudicially kill people on the allegation that they have committed crimes.”
Responding to claims that Nigerians had taken over parts of South African cities, the union leader dismissed the narrative, saying Nigerians acquire properties through legitimate means.
“Nigerians are business people. Some of them do not hijack properties. These properties are being bought from hard-earned monies that they make in the country,” he said.
Nwobi called for fairness in the treatment of Nigerians living in South Africa, urging authorities to distinguish between law-abiding residents and individuals involved in criminal activities.
