Nigerian singer Burna Boy has vowed never to set foot again in South Again unless the South African government does something about the wave of xenophobic attacks in the country that usually target Nigerians.
Another wave of xenophobic attacks in Johannesburg on Monday morning saw five people dead and shops looted and destroyed. Most of those affected were Nigerians, although past attacks had also targeted other Africans.
Burna Boy made his decision known in a series of tweets on Tuesday, where he expressed anger and disappointments over the attacks.
He notes that while ordinarily, he would try to defuse tension in a bid to unite Africans, he instead is taking a stand as he personally has been a victim of a xenophobic attack in South Africa.
The African Giant singer says the incident took place in 2017 and because of that he took a stand to “NOT EVER go to South Africa again for any reason until the SOUTH AFRICAN government wakes the f__ up.”
The singer also adds that what happened (or is happening) in South Africa “goes against everything I stand for.” He explained that perhaps South African’s past history (of apartheid) and oppression may have caused some of the people to “see the people who came to their defence during their Oppression as their Enemies and then worship their oppressors.”
Burna Boy also tweeted a newspaper headline that states that Nigeria spent $61b to fight apartheid in South Africa.
His also called out South Africans artists MI Abaga and AKA for their statements with regard to the xenophobic attacks.
Burna Boy also acknowledged that not all South Africans are xenophobic. “There are some South Africans who are Amazing, Progressive AFRICAN people and I will forever Love them like I Love myself,” he says.
He ended his tweets by saying that he was not advocating for violence but that people should be prepared to defend themselves and their property at all times.
Read the thread:
“Ok. I have been away from social media personally until today. Ordinarily, at a time like this, I should come here and say something to try and calm the situation because my Dream has always been to Unite AFRICA and make us realise that Together we will Literally rule the world…
“But Today After watching the Killing of my people in South Africa the same way we have all watched it happen a few times in the past. F__ ALL THAT! I personally have had my own xenophobic experiences at the hands of South Africans and because of that…..
“I have not set foot in SA since 2017. And I will NOT EVER go to South Africa again for any reason until the SOUTH AFRICAN government wakes the f__ up and really performs A miracle because I don’t know how they can even possibly fix this.
“This goes against everything I stand 4, but at what point do we take action? I understand that years of Oppression has confused South Africans to the point where they see the people who came to their defence during their Oppression as their Enemies and then worship their oppressors.
— Burna Boy (@burnaboy) September 3, 2019
“Imma just get off Twitter now before I take yall back to the Old me.”
“And @MI_Abaga it’s F__ @akaworldwide from now on. And if you down with him, it’s F__ you too. I respect you too much, please Don’t throw my respect out the window cuz I swear you will fly out with it.
“Lemme also say that there are some South Africans who are Amazing, Progressive AFRICAN people and I will forever Love them like I Love myself. But they are not many at all.
— Burna Boy (@burnaboy) September 3, 2019
“And to my Brothers and sisters I am not encouraging any Violence or anything but please PLEASE Protect and Defend yourselves at all times, it may not seem like it but there’s always a way. Management will now take back control of Burna Boy’s Social media. God bless AFRICA.
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