President of the Nigerian Union South Africa, Mr Smart Nwobi, has raised alarm over the worsening plight of Nigerians in the country who are being denied access to public healthcare facilities by an anti-migrant group known as Operation Dudula.
Speaking in an interview with CHUKWUDI AKASIKE of the Punch, Nwobi described the development as “appalling and unlawful,” stressing that the denial of healthcare had forced many Nigerians into dangerous alternatives, including self-medication, with some already losing their lives.
“Nigerians have resorted to self-medication, which is detrimental to their health. Some of them are losing their lives every day. Nigerians are now afraid of going to public hospitals in South Africa to avoid being beaten to death or assaulted. That is the unfortunate part of it. So, this requires urgent intervention,” he said.
According to Nwobi, the actions of the group have intensified in recent months, with its members stationed at some hospitals to demand identification cards from patients before allowing them access to treatment.
“What they (Operation Dudula members) do is that they will come to the hospital and ask for your identification card; if you don’t have the South African citizenship Green Card, they will simply say you should go out of the hospital,” he explained.
The NUSA president, who is also a human rights lawyer, noted that the move was not sanctioned by government authorities but was in clear violation of South Africa’s constitution, which guarantees access to healthcare for everyone.
He pointed out that South Africa’s Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, had already condemned the practice, describing it as illegal and urging those opposed to foreigners’ access to healthcare to seek changes in parliament instead of harassing patients and doctors.
“The minister said if they wanted stopping foreigners from accessing public hospitals in South Africa to become the norm, they should simply go back to the law, vie for elections, win, and implement it in the National Assembly or the parliament in South Africa,” Nwobi recalled.
Read also: GHE GHE university: Coalition petitions NUC over misuse of ‘university’ by social media comedians
Despite the assurances, he lamented that Nigerians continued to suffer the impact of the attacks, with many unable to afford treatment in private hospitals.
To cushion the effect, NUSA has resorted to organising medical outreaches funded by members’ contributions, where African doctors provide free tests and treatment to Nigerians in some provinces.
“This is done within a limited budget because we do not benefit from any funding outside of members’ contributions,” he said.
Nwobi further called on the Nigerian government to intervene urgently, noting that efforts to get assistance from the consulate and embassy had so far yielded no results.
“We are calling on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to kindly intervene. He might be here in September for the G-20, which South Africa would be hosting. Nigerians need help now,” he appealed.
He warned that the crisis, which began earlier this year, may extend to other sectors, including education, as Operation Dudula had already threatened to stop foreign children from attending public schools.
“During one of their interviews, they said that by next year, they would go to schools where foreigners, including Nigerians, attend to stop them. This means these actions are coordinated,” he added.
