MTN Group Chairman Mcebisi Jonas has delivered a powerful and unequivocal condemnation of the ongoing anti-foreigner sentiment and xenophobic violence in South Africa.
He argued that the country’s economic future and fortune are inextricably intertwined with the rest of the African continent and that South Africa is “nothing without Africa.” Jonas made these remarks during a deeply political eulogy at the funeral of Thokozani Damasane, a Zimbabwean-born activist and public servant.
A major figure in the African business world, Jonas forcefully rejected the notion that expelling foreign nationals would solve South Africa’s deep-seated socioeconomic problems, such as inequality, unemployment, and corruption. Instead, he attributed the country’s crises to a profound “failure of the state” and to cynical politicians who exploit people’s fears.
“Foreigners can leave tomorrow – inequality will be with us,” Jonas said to the congregation. “Foreigners will leave tomorrow – unemployment will be with us. Foreigners will leave tomorrow – our police will remain corrupt. Foreigners will leave tomorrow – our politicians will still be concerned with one thing: being elected and re-elected.”
He squarely blamed the South African government for failing to manage immigration, secure its borders, and enforce the law, thereby creating conditions that are ripe for political manipulation. “The problem is the failure of the state. The state doesn’t manage immigration. It doesn’t manage its borders. It doesn’t enforce law enforcement. It doesn’t manage education. What are you expecting?” he asked.
Jonas explained how this state failure makes citizens vulnerable to political opportunists who offer false solutions. “When people feel the burn, they become vulnerable to politicians whose sole purpose is to be elected and re-elected. Some of them have no credibility whatsoever. But they lead marches and tell our people that the problem is not us – it is foreigners.”
Beyond current political failures, Jonas offered a historical critique of tribalism and ethno-nationalism. He described them as colonial inventions designed to create divisions among African people, which have now mutated into contemporary xenophobia. “The tribe is a product of colonial powers,” he argued, noting that ethnic divisions were historically amplified to enforce indirect rule.
He lamented that this colonial logic has become the driving force behind modern anti-foreigner violence. “You would see in the streets, it’s no longer about whether you are from South Africa or not from South Africa. It’s about the tribe, it’s about who you are, you are not like us, and you are different, and therefore we have to persecute you. Something fundamental has been lost in our country. Something fundamental has been lost in our nations,” Jonas said.
Jonas did not spare liberation movements from his criticism, accusing them of maintaining ethnic divisions for their own political gain. “Liberation movements still sustain this thing of tribes – Zulu and Xhosa – and we sustain this thing as if it is real. It is in our heads. We’re creating it because it makes us feel big. Identity politics – we must banish them in our country. Ethno-nationalism is something that in this country we must banish.”
Reflecting on the life of Damasane, who made South Africa his home after apartheid, Jonas spoke of the late activist’s deep commitment to his adopted country. “He immersed himself deeply into the struggles, into the pains of South Africans, and he became one of us,” Jonas said. “In Damasane’s strength, our strength as South Africa and South Africans are reflected. And in his weaknesses, our own weaknesses are reflected.”
Jonas recounted a powerful conversation where Damasane had warned a young South African that they might one day want to leave their own country. He noted the tragic prescience of those words in light of South Africa’s current challenges. “As I stand up today, I look at South Africa. The level of oppression and inequality, the level of exclusion of our people, the level of corruption, the betrayal of the dream of liberation – those words of Damasane ring very loud in my ears.”
He concluded with a call for continental solidarity, reminding his audience of the deep economic interconnectedness of all African nations. “We are a nation embedded in Africa. And without Africa, our growth as a country – economically – our fortune is intertwined with the growth of Africa. South Africa is nothing without Africa. And Africa is nothing without South Africa… We cannot judge people by their origin. We cannot determine the legal status of people by their origin.”
(Ripples)