Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, has said that diplomatic ties between Nigeria and South Africa will not be severed.
Onyeama, speaking on Friday, September 6, gave the reason why the two countries could not break relations despite the xenophobic attacks on Nigerians in South Africa.
The Minister, who addressed the Senate Committee on Diaspora, said that such action would not be in the best interest of the country as there were over 800,000 Nigerians residing legally in South Africa.
Onyeama disclosed that Nigerians and their investments in South Africa be greatly affected if ties were broken. He added that the envoy sent to Johannesburg by President Muhammadu Buhari would return on Saturday, August 6.
We are not thinking to the stage of diplomatic ties being called off. There are various options. We are not by any means at a stage where we are breaking diplomatic relations with South Africa.
…We know that a Nigerian Airline is putting a plane at the disposal of most Nigerians that wish to take the opportunity to leave South Africa. This is purely voluntary, but we are particularly determined to particularly make sure that this crisis does not re-occur.Geoffrey Onyeama – pmnewsnigeria.com
