MTN Group Chairman and former South African Deputy Finance Minister, Mcebisi Jonas, has condemned rising anti-foreigner sentiment in South Africa, describing xenophobia as a symptom of state failure rather than the presence of migrants.
Jonas made the remarks during the funeral of Zimbabwean-born activist and public servant, Thokozani Damasane, in Johannesburg, where he urged South Africans to reject ethnic divisions and embrace a renewed sense of national and continental unity.
Speaking during his tribute, Jonas argued that deporting foreign nationals would not solve the country’s deep-rooted socio-economic problems.
“Foreigners can leave tomorrow, inequality will be with us. Foreigners will leave tomorrow, unemployment will be with us. Foreigners will leave tomorrow, our police will remain corrupt,” he said.
He blamed South Africa’s challenges on failures in governance, including weak border management, poor law enforcement and inadequate public services.
“The problem is the failure of the state. The state doesn’t manage immigration. It doesn’t manage its borders. It doesn’t enforce law enforcement. It doesn’t manage education,” Jonas said.
According to him, these shortcomings have created opportunities for politicians to exploit public frustration by blaming immigrants for the country’s problems.
Jonas also criticised identity politics and tribalism, describing them as colonial constructs that continue to fuel divisions across African societies.
“The tribe is a product of colonial powers,” he said, adding that South Africa must reject ethnic nationalism and build a society based on shared humanity rather than origin.
Paying tribute to Damasane, who was born in Zimbabwe but spent much of his public life in South Africa, Jonas described him as a man who devoted himself to the country’s struggles despite arriving as a foreigner.
“He immersed himself deeply into the struggles, into the pains of South Africans, and he became one of us,” he said.
Jonas urged South Africans to remember that the country’s future is closely linked to the rest of the continent.
“We are a nation embedded in Africa. Without Africa, our growth as a country is impossible. South Africa is nothing without Africa, and Africa is nothing without South Africa,” he stated.
He also urged citizens not to judge people based on their nationality or place of origin, stressing that values, integrity and commitment to society matter more than birthplace.
Jonas’ remarks come amid renewed debates over immigration and recurring incidents of xenophobic violence in South Africa, where foreign nationals from countries including Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Malawi have repeatedly been targeted during periods of social and economic tension.