The African National Congress (ANC) secretary-general Fikile Mbalula is confident President Cyril Ramaphosa will outline government’s response to the immigration challenges in South Africa.
Ramaphosa is expected to address the nation tonight on government’s management approach to migration related issues.
This follows widespread protests across the country over undocumented foreign nationals.
The protests have led to localised attacks and evacuations by some African nations including, Ghana and Malawi.
Mbalula who was speaking on the sidelines of an ANC volunteers programme in KwaZulu-Natal said that whilst the grievances raised by some South Africans are legitimate however, government cannot permit groups to take the law into their own hands and call for unlawful shutdowns.
Mbalula has urged South Africans to remain calm while government develops measures to address the issue. He says the matter requires a lawful and coordinated response.
“In this particular instance, the government must formulate a comprehensive legal response to undermine illegal mobilisation and that will lead to vigilantism and our country to be flagged as xenophobic. South Africa is not xenophobic and that we will contest and the government must respond to that. What we are against is when people organise themselves in groups and take the law into their own hands and call for shutdown.”
