Nigerians living in South Africa have raised the alarm over a fresh wave of xenophobic threats by an anti-migrant group known as Operation Dudula.
Leaders of Nigerian communities are calling for urgent diplomatic intervention following reports of attacks and harassment allegedly spearheaded by the group, which has been accused of blocking foreigners from accessing public hospitals.
The outcry comes amid sustained harassment that began earlier this year, fuelling fears of another round of xenophobic violence.
In a viral video clip seen by Saturday PUNCH, one of the group’s leaders was captured ordering foreigners out of a public hospital.
If you know yourself that you are not a South African, please stand up. Stand up right now. Don’t try us because we are going to check everybody,” he declared while marching them out of the facility.
Founded as a grassroots campaign, Operation Dudula claims to be fighting illegal immigration, drug trafficking, and what it calls the unlawful takeover of jobs and services by undocumented foreigners.
According to reports, members of the group have been blocking clinics, inspecting businesses, and confronting immigrants.
Nigerian leaders demand intervention
In separate interviews with Saturday PUNCH, leaders of Nigerian associations and affected residents recounted harrowing experiences and warned that the crisis had reached an alarming level.
The President of the Nigerian Citizens Association in South Africa, Frank Onyekwelu, described the attacks as another wave of xenophobia targeted at foreign nationals.
“We have cried out at this ill-treatment, which we see as another form of xenophobic attack, as they are expressing hate and injustice against foreign nationals. We are not happy with it,” he told Saturday PUNCH.
Onyekwelu said the Nigerian community had already reached out to political groups and immigration bodies to express concerns.
He urged both governments to intervene diplomatically.
The community leader narrated disturbing cases, including women giving birth on bare floors outside hospitals without medical care, and patients being discharged without treatment.
Imagine a woman giving birth on a bare floor in an open space in front of a hospital without getting any antenatal care and the assistance of a midwife.
“Some patients are being forcefully discharged from hospitals without proper treatment and care. What if it is a life-and-death situation? Some of them would just die like chickens,” he lamented.
He disclosed that while those who could afford it were being encouraged to seek help in private clinics, Nigerian doctors had stepped in to assist victims pending when the crisis would be resolved.
The President of the Nigerian Union in South Africa, Smart Nwobi, also condemned the continuous harassment of Nigerians and other foreign nationals by members of Operation Dudula.
Nwobi told Saturday PUNCH that the situation had reached an alarming level as he cited a recent case involving a nursing mother who was barred from taking her baby for immunisation at a public hospital.
“I got a disturbing call this morning from another lady. She just gave birth to a baby, so she went to the hospital to get immunised. She had an appointment with the doctor at the clinic. But members of Operation Dudula barred her from entering the hospital.
“It is really alarming. We are appealing to the government to deploy security agents to protect public facilities so that criminals will not continue taking the law into their hands,” he said.
