Negative publicity that suggests South Africa is a xenophobic country has not been well managed, argues a respected reputational expert. This follows the on-going citizenship debacle surrounding Chidimma Adetshina, reports The Citizen. Following her withdrawal from Miss South Africa, Adetshina is preparing to contest Miss Universe Nigeria and will represent the East African nation internationally if she wins.
Whether poorly managed or not, Adetshina’s withdrawal from the Miss South Africa contestant has once again shed a spotlight on the difference between permanent residence and citizenship. This has even escalated by Home Affairs, making a public ultimatum regarding impending South African ID document cancellations (mostly for illegal immigrants).
SOUTH AFRICA IS A XENOPHOBIC COUNTRY
Nevertheless, reputation-management expert Tshepo Matseba has come out slamming South Africa’s handling of the xenophobia allegations. While accusations that South Africa is a xenophobic country have been rife on the continent for a while, Matseba believes the Adetshina debacle has negatively affected SA on an international scale.
It’s alleged that Adetshina’s mother is from Mozambique and her father from Nigeria. She is therefore not capable of being a South African citizen through any acceptable legal means. In turn, Matseba said the pageant’s organisers should have verified all the participants’ information thoroughly beforehand. And upon finding inaccuracies, it should have communicated its concerns properly. In turn, this would stopped the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie from turning to social media about the allegations without all the information.
AN IMPORTANT DEBATE
Matseba urged event organisers to think of this as a cautionary tale. Any national or international events must verify the identity of all people involved. “McKenzie spoke about the issue and that raised an important debate. But it would have been much better if all the facts were at hand first. This has only prompted a preliminary investigation by Home Affairs and we’re still waiting for the final results. The young lady was caught in a storm that she did not create. But if it comes out that her parents manipulated the system to obtain South African citizenship it must be corrected,” said Matseba.
DO YOU THINK SOUTH AFRICA IS XENOPHOBIC?
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