President Bola Tinubu has declined to receive a special envoy sent by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, amid mounting anger over continued xenophobic attacks on Nigerians in South Africa.
The South African delegation, led by Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola, arrived in Abuja on Friday, July 24, carrying what was described as a “very important message” for the Nigerian leader. Tinubu has yet to grant them an audience.
The snub comes barely 24 hours after the reported killing of a Nigerian national, Chika Ibe, who was allegedly picked up from his residence at Parksig Villas Complex in Bellville, Cape Town, and tortured to death by South African Police Service (SAPS) personnel.
Nigeria has held a firm line against the attacks. At the 69th Ordinary Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS in Lungi, Sierra Leone, Vice President Kashim Shettima, standing in for Tinubu, condemned the violence and vowed that Nigeria would push for tougher continental measures against xenophobia at the African Union.
“We evacuated 1,490 Nigerians affected by previous xenophobic violence,” Shettima said, calling for a united continental response to protect the rights and dignity of Africans across the continent, and reaffirming Nigeria’s commitment to working with regional and continental bodies to tackle the crisis.
Diplomatic sources said Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, advised that this was not the time for Tinubu to meet the South African envoy, citing the ongoing attacks on Nigerians, their businesses, and their properties in South Africa.
According to the sources, Odumegwu-Ojukwu stressed that the delegation could not secure a presidential audience without a prior appointment and concrete commitments from Pretoria. She reportedly insisted that South Africa must first present a signed copy of the Memorandum of Understanding on the Early Warning Mechanism (EWM) — an agreement both countries signed in Abuja on October 22 last year — before any further diplomatic engagement.
South Africa has yet to ratify that agreement, citing reasons Nigerian officials described as inadequate. The EWM was designed to deepen cooperation between both nations in monitoring threats, protecting citizens, and handling consular matters, with rapid communication channels to de-escalate security risks and prevent reprisals and xenophobic attacks. Ministry officials noted the framework could also have paved the way for compensation claims by Nigerians whose businesses and properties were destroyed in past attacks — compensation South African authorities have so far declined to pay.
As of filing, Tinubu had yet to agree to meet the envoy, and the outcome of a weekend phone call reportedly initiated by Ramaphosa remained unclear.
Observers say South Africa’s diplomatic push may be driven less by goodwill than by concern over the fallout for South African investments in Nigeria, and by Nigeria’s growing campaign for stronger continental action against xenophobia.
— Ogbeni Olawale Dawodu
