As S’African envoy says country safe for legitimate travellers amid renewed violence

Federal Government has assured Nigerian auto spare parts dealers in Angola of its commitment to protecting their investments and promoting the interests of Nigerians living and doing business abroad.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, gave the assurance on the sidelines of the just-held 21st Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU), when she inspected facilities at Cidade De Motores (City of Engines), Golf 2, Luanda, where the Nigerian Auto Parts Dealers Association has established a major market.

The minister expressed pride in the achievement of the Nigerian traders, describing the project as a demonstration of the “pioneering spirit of Nigerians” and a model of what Nigerians can accomplish abroad.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu said the protection of Nigerian businesses would be prioritised in future bilateral engagements with Angola, particularly during the next Nigeria-Angola Joint Commission.

Earlier, the President of the United Auto Parts Dealers Association, Mr Chuks Ukachi, thanked the minister for visiting the market despite her busy schedule in Angola.

Ukachi explained that the project was conceived after Angolan authorities stopped Nigerian traders from operating along the roadside, leaving many members without business for about two years.

MEANWHILE, the South African government has assured Nigerian travellers that the country remains safe for legitimate visitors, urging them not to allow isolated incidents reported in the mainstream and social media to shape their perception of the destination.

The Acting High Commissioner and Consul-General of South Africa, Prof. Bobby Moroe, gave the assurance yesterday at the South Africa Tourism Connect held in Lagos.

Moroe, who addressed concerns over the safety and treatment of foreign nationals in South Africa, said incidents of criminality should not be used to portray the average South African or the entire country.

According to him, the South African government condemned criminality in all its forms, stressing that crime had no nationality.

He also cited the South African constitution, which he said affirmed that the country was for all who live in it, while distinguishing between illegal migration and undocumented migration.

The event, organised to strengthen tourism, trade and cultural ties between Nigeria and South Africa, brought together representatives of the South African Tourism Board, South African Airways (SAA), Nigeria–South Africa Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA) and National Association of Nigeria Tour Operators (NATOP).

Just as South Africa gave the assurance of safety, a demonstration against undocumented migrants in South Africa descended into violence yesterday, with one foreign national arrested and a community leader saying five Congolese were hurt.

The protest was in the port city of Durban, which has been at the epicentre of weeks of action against irregular migration, in which at least four foreign nationals have been killed, and tens of thousands have fled the country.

Police said about 100 marchers from an anti-illegal migrant group went on what they called “a clean-up campaign” against an encampment of several hundred foreign nationals outside a government office.

Foreigners, many of them from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), moved to the site 13 weeks ago to seek protection against mobs of South Africans campaigning against undocumented migrants.