President Bola Tinubu on Monday declined to receive a special delegation from South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, over the ongoing xenophobic attacks on Nigerians in South Africa, directing the visiting team to instead meet with the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye.
Multiple credible Presidency sources with knowledge of the development confirmed to PUNCH Online that the delegation, led by South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, had sought an audience with the President after arriving in Abuja on Friday.
Instead, Tinubu instructed them to engage with Enikanolaiye, who was appointed Minister of State for Foreign Affairs in June 2026 after Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu was elevated to the substantive ministerial position following the exit of Yusuf Tuggar.
The development comes amid a diplomatic row between both countries over renewed xenophobic attacks targeting Nigerians and other African nationals in South Africa, which forced the evacuation of nearly 600 Nigerians back home.
One Presidency source said, “They actually came here on Friday wanting to see the President. But there was no prior notice.
“And we said we can’t just allow you to see the President without first asking him if he is available. So we asked, and the President said they could come on Monday.
“But when Monday came, he simply said they should go and meet the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Enikanolaiye, and whatever they discuss, the Minister would come and brief him.”
A second source confirmed the President’s decision, saying, “I just confirmed it. He is not seeing them. The meeting is not happening.”
A third Presidency official added, “We don’t have that on the schedule today.”
The South African delegation reportedly remained in Abuja throughout the weekend after arriving on July 24, carrying a message from Ramaphosa.
Sources further disclosed that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, who is attending official engagements in Addis Ababa, had advised that it was not an appropriate time for the President to personally receive the South African delegation while attacks on Nigerians and their businesses were still ongoing.
Receiving the South African delegation in Abuja, Enikanolaiye said Tinubu directed him to engage the envoys on resolving the crisis, stressing that the longstanding relationship between Nigeria and South Africa should not be undermined by attacks on African migrants.
“It is with profound pleasure that I welcome our brothers from South Africa. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had actually asked us to meet with you and exchange views and perspectives on how to address and resolve the ongoing Afrophobic attacks in South Africa, of which Nigerians, and other citizens of Africa, have been victims,” he said.
The minister lamented the recurring attacks on Nigerians, recalling that such incidents had persisted for decades.
“We have seen a pattern emerge as early as 1995, 1998, 2006, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024 and 2026. It is on record that from 2022 alone, 98 Nigerians have died in mob actions, in hate-related actions that we have called Afrophobia, because we found that the preponderant victims of this ugly situation are Africans and Nigerians in particular,” he said.
Enikanolaiye recalled Nigeria’s role in supporting South Africa’s liberation from apartheid and said the violence was inconsistent with the relationship both countries had built over the years.
He stressed that while Nigeria does not support criminality, anyone accused of committing offences should face due process rather than mob violence.
“If someone is, quote-unquote, a criminal for drug trafficking, there are rules, there are regulations for when they are arrested, prosecuted, and jailed. The Nigerian government will not support drug peddlers, but please, what we’re saying is that treat them in accordance with your constitution, in accordance with international human rights instruments, in accordance with the minimum requirement of humanity.
“But what we have found is that this xenophobic act has gone beyond the attack on criminals. We have records of Nigerians who have a legitimate purpose to remain in South Africa, yet they have been attacked.
“We could see some mob actions, where we saw the police watching, as if they are helpless to address this situation, which to us raises issues of state responsibility. It raises issues of complicity. If the state authorities are not able or unwilling to tackle these challenges,” he said.
He described the humanitarian impact of the attacks as devastating, recalling the evacuation of nearly 1,500 Nigerians from South Africa.
“The last batch of evacuees we moved from there, we had almost 1,500 of our nationals. It was not a pleasant experience. I shed tears in the plane when I saw children, women, the elderly returning home almost with nothing. Some of them, their properties have been looted. Some of them have been destroyed,” he said.
Responding, Lamola said Ramaphosa had sent him as a special envoy to deliver a message to Tinubu and reaffirm South Africa’s opposition to xenophobia and other forms of intolerance.
“We have been outspoken against any intolerance, including xenophobia, racism, homophobia, violence, discrimination directed at individuals within our borders,” Lamola said.
He, however, maintained that South Africa would continue enforcing its immigration laws and addressing criminal activities.
“President Ramaphosa has also been very firm on South Africa’s sovereign right to enforce immigration laws, including to deal decisively with irregular migration, undocumented immigrants, including acts of criminality that is sometimes committed within our borders,” he said.
Lamola added that migration remained a continental challenge requiring joint solutions.
“We believe that Nigeria and South Africa have a shared responsibility to respond to these challenges within the African continent of migration. Across the continent, migration remains a huge challenge that all of us have to work together to address,” he said.
He expressed optimism that the Abuja meeting would strengthen bilateral engagement and help both countries resolve the crisis through sustained dialogue.
Relations between Nigeria and South Africa have deteriorated in recent weeks following a wave of xenophobic violence that erupted in April 2026 across several South African provinces.
The crisis prompted Tinubu to approve five Air Peace evacuation flights after more than 1,000 Nigerians registered for voluntary repatriation.
Nigeria also warned that retaliatory diplomatic measures remained an option, while the House of Representatives recommended the suspension of business permits for South African companies operating in Nigeria and the Senate dispatched a delegation to Pretoria to register the country’s displeasure.
According to PUNCH, Lamola’s visit was intended as Ramaphosa’s effort to de-escalate tensions through direct diplomatic engagement with the Nigerian Presidency ahead of the African Union Extraordinary Summit on conflict prevention and resolution scheduled for Angola from August 29 to 30, 2026.
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