Nigerians in South Africa count losses as Tension Reduces
The Nigerian Union in South Africa has claimed that Nigerian citizens in the country have lost over 4.6 million Rand (N84 million) to the ongoing xenophobic attacks.
The President of the Union in South Africa, Ikechukwu Anyene, while speaking with journalists over a phone conversation, said that the Union has calculated their losses and submitted their reports to Nigeria’s Consul-General to South Africa.
He said: “The Nigerian Union in South Africa has completed documentation of the losses suffered by Nigerians to xenophobic attacks.
“Nigerians lost more than 4.6 million Rand or N84 million during the attacks. A mechanic workshop owned by a Nigerian in Jeppes, near Johannesburg, for example was completely burnt with 11 cars inside it. The loss is put at more than one million Rand or N20 million.’’
He also urged the federal government to help re-settle the Nigerian victims of the attacks as many have lost their means of livelihood.
He continued: “The Consul-General has travelled to Nigeria and we appeal to the Federal Government to do something urgent to assist Nigerians affected by the attacks.
“We have made representations to the Federal government. We are also hoping that working with the South African government, there will be a way to compensate the affected Nigerians so as to enable them go back to their normal lives.
“More than 50 Nigerians were displaced during the attacks. The Union has assisted them to return home. The Union is also planning to assist a family to move to a new accommodation because the present home is not safe.
“The tension is less now. The South African government has come out in full force to check the attacks.”