Former President Thabo Mbeki has warned South Africans against scapegoating foreign nationals for the country’s persistent challenges, arguing that unemployment and crime are genuine concerns but blaming outsiders for domestic failures is deeply misguided.
Speaking at a public engagement over the weekend, Mbeki posed a pointed question that has since reverberated across political and social circles: “Why are we blaming other people for our own faults?”
The former president acknowledged that South Africa faces legitimate crises. Unemployment remains stubbornly high, with official figures showing nearly one in three jobseekers unable to find work. Crime, particularly violent crime, continues to plague communities nationwide. Mbeki did not dismiss these realities.
However, he firmly rejected the growing narrative that attributes these problems primarily to the presence of foreign nationals, many of whom come from other African countries seeking economic refuge.
“Yes, we have high unemployment. Yes, we have crime. These are genuine concerns that demand urgent action,” Mbeki said. “But to point fingers at foreign nationals and say they are the cause – that is not only wrong, it is a dangerous distraction from the real work we must do.”
The former president’s remarks come amid recurring waves of xenophobic rhetoric and, at times, violence against foreign-owned businesses in various South African communities. Politicians and community leaders have occasionally been accused of exploiting anti-foreigner sentiment for political gain.
Mbeki called for honest self-reflection, urging South Africans to examine structural failures within the domestic economy and governance systems. He pointed to inadequate education and skills development, poor municipal management, and corruption as root causes that require homegrown solutions.
“We cannot build a better South Africa by tearing down our African brothers and sisters,” he said. “The solution to unemployment is not deportation. The solution to crime is not blaming the stranger among us. The solution is fixing our own systems, our own failures, our own faults.”
Political analysts noted that Mbeki’s intervention carries weight given his stature as a respected elder statesman. His comments subtly rebuke populist tendencies while reaffirming South Africa’s commitment to pan-African solidarity.
The former president concluded with a call for unity and accountability: “Let us look in the mirror. Let us ask ourselves hard questions. And let us fix what we have broken together.”