''116 Nigerians Killed In South Africa Within 2 Years'' - Abike Dabiri-Erewa Storms South Africa High Commission Demanding Answers

The Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Abike Dabiri-Erewa has challenged her South African counterpart on a visit to the South African high commissioner to Nigeria, Lulu Mnguni, on the need to bring to justice, the killers of a Nigerian who died in South Africa in 2016. She also voiced her displeasure at the high rate of xenophobic attacks against Nigerians by South Africans.

A Nigerian, Tochukwu Nnadi, was killed  in December 2016 by South African police officers. Nnadi was choked to death for allegedly dealing in drugs. Damning statistics shows that 116 Nigerians were killed within two years in South Africa and sadly, 63 per cent of the killing was carried out by the South African Police. 

She said:

“The last time we came here was on a sad note, we are here again on another sad note, but you have made very good comment about the fact that we need to work together to stop what is going on anywhere in Africa.

“We are worried about the criminalization of immigrants especially among ourselves and we are worried in particular about the criminalization of Nigerian migrants in South Africa.”

“Yes, some do commit crimes and they deserved to be punished, but the extra-judicial killings worried us. In the last two years, 116 Nigerians had been killed in South Africa and according to statistics, 63 per cent of them were killed by the police and we hope that the death of the Nigerian who died on the 29th of December, 2016, would get justice in the hands of the South African authorities because I know you will and I believe you will.”

She called on the South African authorities to educate their citizens on the need to stop killings of immigrants which she described as senseless.