Ooni of Ife knocks South Africa, says xenophobic attacks shameful

As more reactions continue to trail the recent attacks by South Africans on foreign nationals, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi II on Thursday, described the incident has shameful and unacceptable to the black race.

This was even as the monarch condemned South African authorities for not taking concrete steps towards containing the crisis since it began.

He charged the government and its people not to forget the role Nigeria played to help the country during apartheid, which resulted to their freedom in 1994.

He also advised Nigerians alleged to have embarked on reprisal attacks on South African companies to stop forthwith and allow peace to reign.

Recall that at least five Africans have been killed in attacks on foreigners in South Africa this week.

The monarch said, ”This attack is a shame on the black people, we all need to come together and see ourselves as one.”

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“We must erase the ongoing xenophobic killings in Africa, we only have artificial boundaries. We are all the same. Whether Nigeria or South Africa.

“Also, we must not forget so soon that Nigeria helped South Africa to fight the Apartheid regime that led her to becoming a democratic country in 1994.

“That development led to the late Nelson Mandela emerging as the first democratically elected president of South Africa.”

He added: ”What is the percentage of those people’s business in the economy of South Africa? It’s very minute.

“They are attacking their fellow brothers. Nigeria did a lot for South Africa back then.

”Our heritage and culture are factors that bring us together as members of the same family

” The attacks on one another is mere ignorance and unacceptable. We should come together as one unified force.”

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