Africa-Press – Eswatini. Recent developments suggest that it will not be long from now that this country will have to defend itself from criticism of being prejudiced against foreigners, particularly Asian nationals, who are nowhere near the classification of the investor we desire for the growth of our economy and increase job opportunities.
Setting the scene for this upcoming man-made crisis is the uncontrollable influx of Asian nationals who have access to our citizenship. One could be forgiven to think it was one of the ‘indali’ (sale) items on the shelves of their innumerable shops that are evidence of a fantastically dismal exercise of economic empowerment.
Mockery
It makes a mockery of the Reservation of Certain Trades and Businesses for Swazi Citizens Regulations of 2017. This law was meant to protect 31 kinds of businesses that will strictly be for Eswatini citizens, which include a general, grocery, produce and handwork, private investigator, dealer or speculator in livestock, debt collector, street vendor and funeral parlour and street vendors. Creating porous borders is also not among the targets of the country’s Investor Road Map, which seeks to improve the ease of doing business. Government is fond of stating that the private sector is the engine of growth in the country and recognises that most new jobs in a growing economy are created by the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), which is the backbone of any economy.
Much effort has been directed towards incentivising this sector, which has created about 92 000 jobs for emaSwati, which represents 21 per cent of the country’s workforce. We are told that there are about 50 000 MSMEs generating a monthly turnover of E92.5 million. This is a significant contribution that could be harmed if the environment in which they ought to grow is being deliberately littered with setbacks from greed and self- enrichment.
Deportation
Every other day, a number of foreign nationals are found either running or working in these shops illegally. Just the other week, 18 Somalis and Pakistani nationals appeared at the Siteki Magistrates Court for illegal entry. The taxpayer then has to foot the bill for their incarceration and deportation only for more to enter the same day. The Ministry of Home Affairs has, once again, set out on a hypocritical exercise to close the shops that they will find run by ‘fellow citizens’, thanks to officials from the same ministry who facilitated this without due process. Not surprisingly, the catalyst behind it all is our beloved corruption.
We have screamed our voices hoarse in calls to address the scourge of corruption without success, notwithstanding that just about every sector has suffered paralysis in one form or another because of it. Bearing the brunt of the corruption scourge is the health sector, where lives are being lost on a daily basis due to a shortage of essential drugs. The inherent danger is the revolt we are continuing to see when society feels the law is failing to take its course. If we haven’t gotten ourselves around to realising that the people we once thought were peace-loving, friendly and harmless are the same today, then we are deliberately blind to the rising statistics of lawlessness throughout the country.
Attacks
A red flag has already been raised following targeted attacks on Asian nationals locally, particularly at their businesses. It was not too long ago that our neighbouring country, South Africa, had to contend with attacks on foreign nationals accused of taking over their businesses in communities where they seemed to dominate the ‘spaza’ (corner shop) space. They became the scapegoats for the country’s unemployment challenges. Since then, SA has been working on legislation that would open more space for locals in sectors seen as crowded by foreigners. Our relatives in that country’s mining sector will also be affected in the next few years when the new immigration policies kick in.
EmaSwati truck drivers are currently working in fear following recent arson attacks on their vehicles, allegedly by protestors blaming them for taking away their jobs. This is probably why the influx has gravitated towards Eswatini, thanks to our porous borders. By failing to stop this influx, coupled with the return of our fellow countrymen who have been rejected and humiliated for being foreign, we are creating fertile ground for conflict in a country that already has to contend with high levels of unemployment, poverty and inequality.
We should not be surprised, therefore, when we find ourselves grappling with xenophobia. This is not far-fetched, so long as the laws and its enforcers are failing to avert this impending new crisis.We know where the loopholes are, and we are aware of the facilitators making this possible, so if the Ministry of Home Affairs is really serious about its illegal foreigners campaign, it has to start with locking up the local enablers.
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