South Africa Xenophobic attacks: Lack of leadership

Not so many years ago, South Africa was under apartheid and the liberation struggle fighters were accommodated by fellow African countries such as Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Lesotho, Nigeria, Angola, etc.

The ANC as the biggest liberation movement had military and political training camps and headquarters in many of these countries for the purpose of advancing its liberation programmes and quest for political power.

They were not only shielded from arrests from the repressive regime of the day, which was baying for their blood, but afforded many other assistance by the very same African brothers and sisters. The help by these sister countries lasted for over three decades.

This year Thabo Mbeki African Institute of leadership (TMALI) held an inaugural lecture in celebration of Africa Day with former president of the United Republic of Tanzania Ben Mkapa as the main speaker. After, former president Mbeki thanked Mkapa and the people of Tanzania not only for their immense contribution to the liberation of South Africa but also for their advice through President Nyerere during the Codesa negotiations.

This makes one realise how much we, as South Africans owe our fellow Africans for our liberation and why President Mbeki defined his presidency on African Renaissance policy.

Despite all of these documented facts about Africa's help on our liberation struggle, we have now turned our backs on our fellow Africans. Every day when one reads or watches the news, a fellow African's property has been forcefully taken, damaged or worse South Africans have roasted or decapitated a fellow African, for no reason.

All of these senseless crimes on our fellow Africans occur in communities where, we live and most importantly, ANC has branches. This means that one way or another our very own brothers and sisters, and most obviously ANC members are involved in these horrendous and inhuman acts.

Whenever this has happen we hear that the police are dealing with the matter, which is fine but where is ANC, which has benefitted so much from the help by fellow African countries during the struggle days?

I am posing this question because I believe that the police's role in these acts is not enough and mostly, if, not all the time, is after the fact. Why doesn't, ANC knowing what it knows, educate its members in communities about all of this and thus proactively curb the occurrence of these acts?

I am of the view that ANC is better positioned to help the State to proactively stop the killing of fellow Africans but to date, ANC is still mainly mum on the xenophobic attacks and from time to time, distantly comment on the matter, in passing through the media.

ANC must sharply raise the matter within its structures and also educate its members about the contribution of Africa to our struggle to avoid these senseless crimes.

Africans are one of own and in conclusion I therefore blame xenophobic attacks on ANC's lack of political leadership to deal decisively with this matter.