Industrial Global Union, a labour union with over 100 affiliates and 800,000 member-workers in Africa, largely from Nigeria and South Africa, has lend joined progressive forces worldwide, to strongly condemn the recent reckless violent reactionary attacks on Africans working and residing in South Africa, with its unacceptable resultant avoidable destruction of lives and properties.
Serial xenophobic attacks had in over a decade claimed several lives in South Africa.
For the record, the recent attack is the third in a decade, where other Africans, notably Zimbabweans, Nigerians and Pakistanis, were targeted for xenophobic attacks by misguided South Africans.
The attacks, which started in Pretoria West recently, had spread to a few other places during which, many Nigerians were attacked both at home and in the streets with their shops and business premises looted and burnt.
IGU, in a statement signed by its Vice President, Comrade Issa Aremu, and made available to The Point, said that these serial xenophobic attacks on innocent African workers are grossly unwarranted, condemnable and unacceptable.
This was just as it hastened to add that the panacea to these senseless xenophobic attacks is neither reprisals attacks nor negative radicalism, but global demand for all inclusive job-led development and good governance.
Taking a strong stand against terror, IGU said, “We refuse to be diverted to the road of radicalism and xenophobia. We will not be intimidated and driven into hatred. We fight terror with the strongest weapons of human dignity, development, mutual respect and tolerance.
“The xenophobic attacks in South Africa are reflections of the crisis of governance in Africa, as reflected by the worsening poverty and unemployment rate in the continent.”
IGU’s affiliates in Nigeria include: National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria; National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers; Petroleum and Natural gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria; Chemical and Non Metallic Products Senior Staff Association of Nigeria; National Union of Chemical, Footwear, Rubber, Leather and Non Metallic Products Employees; Nigeria Union of Electricity Employees; and Steel and Engineering Workers Union of Nigeria; while its South African affiliates include: Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers’ Union; National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa; National Union of Mineworkers of South Africa; Chemical, Energy, Paper, Printing, Wood and Allied Workers Union of South Africa; and South African Chemical Workers’ Union.
ANGER SHOULD BE AGAINST UNDERDEVELOPMENT, NOT THE PEOPLE
While calling on African students, workers and millions of jobless youths to turn their anger on bad governance, corruption and underdevelopment, which had denied them the commonwealth, jobs creations and welfare, IGU said that it would partner to engage African governments on job creations that must start with the re-industrialisation of the continent and full employment of all African youths in line with the vision of the founding fathers of the Africa Union.
“The recent restiveness of African youths underscores the crisis of confidence in African governments. It is also a rude awakening for African governments to address the problems of inequality on the continent,” it added.
STOP INEQUALITY
IGU said that Africa’s richest one per cent comes from both Nigeria and South Africa, adding that the two countries produce top 20 billionaires on the continent.
Aremu said, “The two countries are also the biggest economies in Africa, but paradoxically, both South Africa and Nigeria are miserable homes to the bottom 150 million poorest of the poor with indecent jobs, low and unpaid without social security. These are the undercurrents of xenophobia. Nigerian students must therefore channel their energies against bad governance and corruption on the continent and not poor immigrants like their misguided counterparts in South Africa. IGU insists that global inequality is a social and economic crisis. Inequality is growing within and between countries. Workers are losing wages, conditions and social protections. Increasing inequality hurts already disadvantaged groups in society the most.
“Poverty rates are even higher among temporary and self-employed workers who are now victims of xenophobia. This is why IGU resolves to continue fighting for an economic model based on rights, fairness and dignity, and supported by strong trade unions. IGU therefore called on African governments to guarantee security of lives and property of their citizens.”
