The story of anti-immigration in South Africa is best illustrated by the life our coloured brother one Gayton Mackenzie.
On August 20, 2025, the British newspaper, Guardian, published an expose on Gayton Mackenzie, South Africa’s Sports minister and leading anti-immigrant advocate.
Mckenzie, born from a mixed Japanese father and a Khoisan mother, was accused of using vile epithets against his own people, “Kaffirs, crazy and incestuous.”
When called to account by the Human Rights Commission the brother showed some repentance.
“I cringe when I see them, and I am truly sorry,” he said.
Mackenzie’s life would have been of no consequence outside South Africa, if it were not for his virulent anti-immigration hatred.
The painful part is that he believes that, he, a progeny of Japanese parents, has more rights to remain on African soil than a Shangaan from Mozambique.
The images we see on a daily basis, conjured up by a group called Dudula are largely based in Durban and Johannesburg, both Zulu strongholds.
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It is amazing that in meetings with Asians, Japanese and Europeans-Dudula is conciliatory and never bothers to ask if they are in South Africa legally.
In fact, they seek co-operation in expelling non-South African blacks from employment and jobs and residences.
Zimbabweans and Nigerians are the best educated and gifted people on the African continent.
Similarly, Nigeria and Zimbabwe are endowed with unlimited natural resources.
Why, three million Zimbabweans and thousands of Nigerians are in South Africa defeats all reason.
In Zimbabwe, the story of Marange diamonds is well known.
Marange tribeswomen had been using polished shiny riverine stones tied to their wastes as some type of anti-pregnancy laces (muti) for generations.
National wealth supposed to last 40 years was deeded to Chinese companies for next to nothing.
In his farewell speech, retiring Chief Justice Luke Malaba has repeated what every tribesman knows.
There are precious stones everywhere. In a casual perusal of daily papers, one will be surprised to note that as many as 27 000 artisanal miners were reported to be operating without licenses in 2025.
There is a similarity between Zimbabwe and Nigeria in that their geniuses and best educated manpower seems to find accommodation abroad rather than at home.
The geniuses, Mutumwa Mawere, Strive Masiyiwa, to mention only two, felt unsafe in the country.
I knew Brother Mawere rather well.
A genius, is by nature a troublesome person, and after acquiring the Shabani Mines, an asbestos industry which controlled 10 percent foreign exchange revenues, the brother was rather ungrateful and irreverent.
The contribution of geniuses far outweighs their idiosyncrasies. Mawere’s mines were nationalised unfairly. The employment of 2 000 workforce was placed in the hands of morons.
The mines collapsed.
When countries make mistakes, it is not that they were not informed.
The attack on commercial agriculture was fool-hardy, and Tanzania’s agriculture minister (April 1980) Muhammad Babu laid out a detailed plan for Robert Mugabe.
Another fact, seizure of property had been done in Uganda, and in the long run, Uganda was forced to re-imburse the Asians it had expelled.
So, Zimbabweans were well aware of the risks.
Everywhere one turns in Zimbabwe, wealth is there for the picking. The Buchwa Mountain runs for 20 miles of pure iron ore. Zisco was the only iron smelter south of Nairobi. There was no competition.
Our poverty is self-induced.
South Africans, therefore, have a point. Zimbabweans have no excuse bothering their neighbors.
In 1967, Herbert Chitepo, then director of Nation Prosecuting Authority in Tanzania was called by president Julius Nyerere.
“You are welcome here. But you have a choice, to go home and liberate Rhodesia, or stay here and grow fat.” The Mwalimu (the teacher) said, as if teaching a child to walk.
I was listening to an (alleged) audio of Nelson Chamisa (19 May) challenging Jameson Timba’s audacity in bringing together a coalition of voices against the constitutional amendment bill (3).
“Who gave you the mandate,” Chamisa’s voice is alleged to have said, “to call a meeting.”
I object to Chamisa’s attitude for two reasons. Chamisa, according to the audio voce, wanted efforts against CAB (3) would fail.
Chamisa wants Zimbabweans to seek his permission, placing himself in an indispensable position. Americans call such leadership- a personality cult whose purpose is not servant leadership but self-aggrandisement.
Since 1980, Zimbabwe has squandered every opportunity for national self-improvement.
Gukurahundi delayed economic development in Matabeleland.
The Great Victoria Falls water-project is yet to be completed.
Zimbabweans deserve to be pushed out of South Africa.
Similarly, Nigerians are the most gifted people on earth. They are capable of surviving even in hell.
The main accusation against them is what is called green card marriages.
Many Nigerians have paid for, or entered into marriages with native women, acquired citizenship, then abandoned these families in favor of their previous marriages back in Nigeria.
In my travels, I once came across a group of Nigerians under police cordon at Amsterdam-for fear that if allowed to walk into the city, they would disappear.
In another case, Nigerian passports were disallowed at Dubai Airport.
Nevertheless, studies in Dallas-Fort-Worth area in Texas reported a community of 100 000 Nigerians (year 2000).
They, together with Ethiopians had captured 80 percent of the taxi business.
Further, 80 percent of all Nigerian adults had advanced degrees, including medical and engineering specialties.
In addition, many of them had several degrees, one had six degrees.
With these qualifications and gifts, and Nigeria being the largest oil producing country in Africa, apart from many other resources, such as coal, iron and rare minerals, Nigeria should be the number one country in Africa.
The Trump administration has suspended Nigerian consular services.
One last point-It was General Muhammad Muritala (d1976) who delivered an ultimatum to British prime minister Margaret Thatcher.
“South Africa’s liberation is not negotiable,” he said.
*Ken Mufuka is a Zimbabwean patriot.
