FG to seek compensation for Nigerians forced to abandon businesses in South Africa

The Nigerian government plans to engage the South African government to seek compensation for Nigerians who were forced to abandon businesses and properties amid ongoing anti-immigrant protests in the country.

The Acting Nigerian High Commissioner to South Africa, Alexander Ajayi disclosed this on Tuesday during an appearance on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief.

He said the Nigerians being repatriated voluntarily opted to return home ahead of the latest planned anti-immigrant protests, and that the Federal Government has begun documenting businesses and properties abandoned by returnees in preparation for compensation talks with South African authorities.

What Ajayi is saying

Ajayi said discussions with South African officials on the compensation issue are already underway, with returning Nigerians now being asked to formally document what they are leaving behind.

• “In terms of the businesses, just three days ago, myself and the South African Deputy Minister of Finance were together and we were discussing this. I took up the discussion with her and we have agreed that we are going to ask our people who are returning to begin to document what they are leaving behind,” he said.
• “I have asked them before they left yesterday to document very accurately those things they were leaving behind in terms of businesses, in terms of even cars, movable and immovable properties. We can now take it up with the South African government. That is the next step we are going to take,” he added.

Ajayi stressed that the repatriation effort would not end with simply bringing Nigerians home.

• “This repatriation will not end with just taking people to Nigeria. We are going to systematically follow up on the information given to us, and I told them to be very accurate with what they are going to give because we are going to work with the South African government to get to the exact locations of all these businesses, shops and properties and present them to the South African government for possible compensation because we will not allow the labour people have suffered to build over the years to just go down the drain or be taken over by people,” he said.

More insights

Ajayi pushed back on claims that most Nigerians in South Africa are undocumented, arguing that the majority migrated to the country through legal channels.

• “In the last three or four years there have been a deluge of applications at the South African Home Office which were not attended to due to systemic issues. So, because of this many, not only Nigerian nationals, were caught in this web of delay, so you cannot rightly claim that these were undocumented because most of them came to the country legally in terms of how somebody should migrate,” he said.
• “So, it is on the basis of now wanting to renew their papers and get them when one expires that they were caught up in the unnecessary delays. So, when people try to say they were undocumented, I quite disagree with that because some of them, based on experience, have had their papers lag behind at the Home Office for years,” he added.

What you should know

Nairametrics earlier reported that dozens of Nigerians in South Africa have sought shelter at the Nigerian High Commission amid fears of possible xenophobic attacks linked to planned anti-immigrant protests, with many still stranded despite the Federal Government’s ongoing evacuation efforts.

The situation was highlighted in a video shared by News Central on Monday, showing a large number of Nigerians gathered at the embassy as uncertainty persisted over the timing and scope of the latest evacuation exercise.

According to the report, women and children among those seeking refuge at the mission were given priority to remain within the premises overnight.