The National Assembly has halted all official visits to South Africa and instructed its members and officials to boycott legislative activities hosted or organized by South African authorities until further notice.
Akin Rotimi, spokesman for the House of Representatives, announced the decision in a statement on Friday.
“The Leadership of the National Assembly, led by H.E. Senator Godswill Akpabio, GCON, President of the Senate, and Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, PhD, GCON, Speaker of the House of Representatives, has directed the Clerk of the National Assembly to communicate to all distinguished senators, honorable members, committees, departments, directorates, officials, and staff the decision of the National Assembly to suspend all official visits to the Republic of South Africa and boycott South African-hosted or South African-organized legislative activities and engagements until further notice,” the statement read.
It followed reports of ongoing xenophobic attacks, violence, intimidation, and property destruction against Nigerians and other African nationalities living in South Africa.
According to the statement, the National Assembly was especially worried about reports of Nigerians being killed, maimed, displaced, and forced to abandon their businesses, investments, houses, and other belongings.
“Of particular concern to the National Assembly is the persistence of these incidents despite repeated appeals by the Federal Government of Nigeria and other stakeholders to the South African authorities to take decisive measures to protect Nigerians and other foreign nationals and bring perpetrators of xenophobic violence to justice,” he stated.
According to Kamoru Ogunlana, Clerk to the Assembly, the decision was reached after consultations with Senate and House leadership.
The instruction applies to official trips by parliamentarians, committees, officials, and National Assembly personnel.
It also covers conferences, seminars, workshops, meetings, parliamentary exchanges, and other legislative activities organized, hosted, funded, or co-sponsored by South African legislative authority.
The National Assembly stated that the suspension would apply to both real and virtual encounters.
However, the statement noted no official delegation or member could participate in such engagements during the suspension without the prior express agreement of the leadership of the Assembly.
The statement read, “For clarity and strict compliance, the directive provides as follows:
“a. All official visits to the Republic of South Africa by the National Assembly, its committees, lawmakers, officials, and staff are hereby suspended;
“b. All participation by the National Assembly, its Committees, lawmakers, officials, and staff in legislative activities, conferences, seminars, workshops, meetings, exchanges, or other engagements organized, hosted, sponsored, or co-sponsored by the Parliament of the Republic of South Africa or other South African legislative authorities is hereby suspended;
“c. The suspension shall apply to both physical and virtual/online engagements, including invitations to participate in meetings, programs, parliamentary exchanges, and other legislative activities hosted from or by South African legislative institutions;
“d. No official delegation, committee, lawmaker, official, or staff member of the National Assembly shall undertake or participate in any such engagement during the period of the suspension without the prior express approval of the Leadership of the National Assembly; and
“e. All existing arrangements, invitations, or proposed programs involving official visits or legislative engagements in South Africa shall be reviewed in accordance with this directive.”
The latest resolution follows earlier this year’s National Assembly condemnation of increasing xenophobic attacks in South Africa and support for diplomatic measures to address the violence against Nigerians.
The Assembly stated that the suspension will stay in effect until further notice and could be revisited by its leadership based on events.
It emphasized that the action did not represent a rejection of Nigeria’s traditional diplomatic and people-to-people ties with South Africa.
“While parliamentary diplomacy and inter-legislative cooperation remain important, they must rest on mutual respect and a shared commitment to protecting life, property, and lawful enterprise,” the statement noted.
