Nigeria threatens retaliation against SA for attacks on its citizens

Nigeria’s foreign minister, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, has threatened that Nigeria might retaliate against South Africa for alleged attacks on its nationals in this country.

She said in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, on Monday that no decision had been taken and did not elaborate on what form any retaliation might take.

A journalist asked her during an impromptu press conference if her government was considering retaliatory measures against South Africa because of attacks on Nigerians in SA.

“Well, that is a situation that we are considering. This is up to our legislature. This is a decision that has to be taken at the highest level of government. But it is not off the table.”

She said earlier, “Citizens are being harassed. Their properties are being looted. Criminal actions are perpetrated on our citizens. The police refuse to do anything. The South African government has not come out strongly — firmly — enough to condemn these incidents. So our citizens are in peril. They are in distress.”

The minister also explained that there had been administrative delays in sending an aircraft to South Africa to fetch Nigerians who wished to leave the country. Her spokesperson, Kimiebi Ebienfa, told Daily Maverick on Wednesday that the first repatriation flight would leave South Africa on Thursday with 268 passengers on board. Last week, he said that Nigeria planned to eventually repatriate between 2,000 and 4,000 of its citizens.

Nigeria’s Premium Times’ report on the minister’s remarks also referred to previous claims by the Nigerian consulate in Johannesburg that “The newest wave of xenophobic violence resulted in the death of two Nigerians — Amaramiro Emmanuel and Ekpenyong Andrew.”

Odumegwu-Ojukwu posted on Instagram last month, “Two Nigerian nationals have been reported dead in separate incidents involving security personnel — Amamiro Chidierbere Emmanuel died on 25 April 2026 as a result of injuries sustained from brutal beatings by military personnel of the South African National Defence Force on 20 April 2026 in Port Elizabeth.

“Nnaemeka Matthew Andrew also died following an alleged interaction with members of the Tshwane Metro Police, and his body [was] discovered at the Pretoria Central Mortuary on 20th April 2026. This is utterly condemnable and unacceptable.”

In response to Odumegwu-Ojukwu’s comments, SANDF spokesperson Siphiwe Dlamini said: “The SANDF was not involved in any death of a civilian from Nigeria, and no one came with such evidence to us.”

Lines of communication

Chrispin Phiri, the spokesperson for International Relations and Cooperation Minister Roland Lamola, responded to Odumegwu-Ojukwu’s threat of possible retaliation by saying, “We attach great importance to our relations with Nigeria, and the lines of communication remain open to ensure that the quality of information before all parties is credible and accurate.

“To this end, we have clarified to the Nigerian government that there have been no extrajudicial killings of Nigerian nationals.”

He repeated President Cyril Ramaphosa’s recent remarks that while the government would take action against the violation of South Africa’s immigration laws, “Only the authorised government officials may act against violations of the law, including violation of our immigration laws. No other person is allowed, for example, to confront someone in the street to demand proof of nationality.”

Phiri added Ramaphosa’s assurance that the state would “act against forces who are exploiting the concerns of our people about illegal immigration to further their own political, personal or criminal agendas”.

There have been no indications that other African governments whose nationals have been caught up in xenophobic violence in South Africa are contemplating any retaliation.

When asked if Mozambique was contemplating any retaliation, Ericino de Salema, the spokesperson for Mozambican President Daniel Chapo, said: “The government of Mozambique will continue addressing the matter in a diplomatic way.”

He pointed out that on 5 May Chapo had visited South Africa and engaged with Ramaphosa on various matters, including xenophobia, “before the deterioration of the situation in the last days”.

Mozambique has provided several buses to repatriate more than 1,100 of its nationals caught up in xenophobic violence around Mossel Bay over the past week. The Mozambique government has claimed that five of its citizens were killed in the violence, while the SA Police Service said it was only two

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Murder and violence in Mossel Bay as anti-foreigner-inspired attacks spread

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Malawi recently repatriated 171 of its nationals because of xenophobic attacks and fears of further attacks.

The Malawian government’s chief secretary, Justin Saidi, said on Tuesday that more than 3,000 Malawians remained “stranded” in SA and that the government would send more buses to fetch them.

There was no hint of retaliation in his speech, and a local journalist remarked to Daily Maverick, “I don’t think Malawi is strong enough economically to use the word ‘retaliate.’

Daily Maverick also approached Ghana’s high commissioner to South Africa, Benjamin Quashie, to ask if Ghana was considering retaliation. He did not reply. Ghana has flown out about 963 of its nationals over the last three weeks.

It is not clear how the Nigerian government might retaliate, except perhaps by restricting the issuing of visas to South Africans wishing to visit Nigeria.

Boycotts

In the past, non-governmental retaliation has included boycotts and physical attacks on the premises of SA companies in Nigeria.

In 2019, the National Association of Nigerian Students organised protests that shut down MTN and Shoprite offices in different cities. There were also reports of attacks on these and other South African businesses, such as MultiChoice, forcing them to close their offices. MTN’s offices in Nigeria were also targeted in 2015.

MTN is probably the largest SA investor in Nigeria. Daily Maverick asked its group spokesperson, Omasan Ogisi, if MTN had experienced any attacks, boycotts or threats of them.

He did not answer directly but referred to a joint statement on 5 June by Business Unity South Africa and Business Leaders South Africa (BLSA) on the immigration issue. The statement noted “the reports of reactions and sentiments emerging in other African countries linked to developments in South Africa”.

It welcomed Ramaphosa’s recent commitment to uphold the rule of law in dealing with migrants and added that for South African multinationals and corporate entities operating across Africa, continental integration “is the driver of our collective success and the direct combating of unemployment, inequality, and economic exclusion.

“By the same token, South Africa benefits enormously from legal investments as well as genuine entrepreneurship, skills, and talents from other African countries. Consequently, when individuals target foreign nationals, they directly harm South Africa’s economic interests.

“Hostility disrupts vital corporate operations, strains diplomatic ties with regional partners, and threatens the safety of personnel and infrastructure across cross-border trade corridors.”

A South African expert on Nigeria, who requested anonymity, said if Nigerian retaliation resulted in boycotts or attacks on South African companies like MTN, that could backfire on Nigeria.

The analyst pointed out that MTN was the largest cellphone service provider in Nigeria and was paying a large amount of tax to the Nigerian fiscus. “If MTN is targeted in any way, that would be a red flag to other potential investors from around the world.”

Standard Bank, which also has extensive operations in Nigeria, said, “We are not aware of any attacks or even threats to our business in Nigeria. Our bank in Nigeria is led by Nigerians; it employs hundreds of Nigerians. Our pensions management business is the largest in the country. Our bank has participated in the funding of some of the systemically important projects in the country. It drives Nigeria’s growth.

“While Standard Bank was founded in SA, citizens of all the countries in which we operate deeply appreciate the pivotal role the bank plays in catalysing the real and financial sectors of their countries and improving the quality of life in each local market in which we operate.” DM