TB Obwoge, I'm saddened that this article even needed to be written, however, and this is not whataboutism, it's more than complicated than that. Criminals from Nigeria are giving Nigerians a bad name. I say this because I am living here. I see things and yes, it's not all Nigerians because I have had the pleasure of meeting great Nigerians and other Africans. Sadly, and this is no excuse, but one of the reasons, those criminals are harming the local people and due to ignorance, people start painting every Nigerian with the same brush. It's a complex issue that our Government has failed to sort out. It is not xenophobia, but Afrophobia, those South Africans are guilty of, because they do not treat Europeans in the same hostile manner.
When you are on the ground, among the people, you will note that most are living among each other or in relationships etc. Unfortunately, mainstream media will portray all Black South Africans that way and it's not true. Our Government needs to deport the ones that are illegal irrespective of their skin colour. Our Government needs to be vigilant and deal with all criminals decisively so that emotions and hate don't spill over into the communities who often get news of bad things, 3rd or 4th hand. And like a broken telephone, the news becomes twisted.

We have criminals living who are born here and those that come here from other countries because our borders are porous. Sadly, innocent people are getting killed or hurt, but that's local people as well.

The situation is complicated when the media highlights the violence and fails to talk about those activists who are doing great work to change the narrative through education.

Thank you for writing this.
As a local, I am deeply disturbed by the violence, but having seen and heard so much, the situation would need a multi-faceted approach.