Fani-Kayode Slams South Africa Over Nigerian Deaths After Torture Video Emerges

Ambassador Femi Fani-Kayode, Nigeria's High Commissioner-Designate to the Republic of South Africa, has expressed profound shock and condemnation following the circulation of a graphic video. The footage purportedly depicts a Nigerian national being fatally brutalized by members of the South African Police Service within his own residence. Taking to Facebook, Fani-Kayode stated that the incident left him 'mortified' and declared that the ongoing persecution of Nigerians in South Africa will no longer be tolerated.

In his online statement, the High Commissioner-Designate recounted watching the secretly recorded video, which he noted is publicly available. He described being deeply shaken by the screams of the young man as officers allegedly placed a plastic bag over his head and subjected him to torture. Fani-Kayode emphatically stated, “The villification, persecution, targetting, extra-judicial k!lling, racial stereotyping and murd£r of Nigerians in South Africa is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.” He further warned that Nigeria would not remain silent or complicit in these crimes against its citizens.

This firm stance, he explained, represents a 'new order,' a position he articulated during a recent meeting with the South African Foreign Minister. He stressed the urgent need for the 'hate to stop,' asserting the inherent value of Nigerian lives. “Nigerian lives and souls are precious before God and I am not one of those self-deprecating Nigerians who places no value on our people and who sees nothing good in our nation,” he wrote.

Fani-Kayode, who welcomed being labelled a 'hardliner,' highlighted alarming statistics: since 2022, no fewer than 90 Nigerians have been murdered by 'Afrophobic forces, rampaging mobs, South African policemen and others,' yet not a single arrest or conviction has occurred for these 'heinous crimes.' He revealed that six Nigerians have been killed this year alone, with three of those deaths attributed to South African police, again without arrests. He cited a recent case in Cape Town where another Nigerian national, identified as Chika Ibe from Abia State, was allegedly 'tortured to de@th' by South African police in his home, while a compatriot was shot in the face with a rubber bullet merely for protesting the death. The video from Bellville, Cape Town, despite denials from the South African Police, appears to show officers restraining Chika Ibe in a manner alleged by witnesses to involve strangulation and suffocation, leading to his death.

He concluded by asserting that such incidents must cease for bilateral relations between Nigeria and South Africa to stabilize. While acknowledging a productive meeting with South African officials where both sides agreed to de-escalate rhetoric and work towards stronger ties, Fani-Kayode emphasized that 'much more needs to be done. Action speaks louder than words.'