South Africans are currently up in arms, demonstrating and demanding that other African nationals who are in their country “illegally” leave because they are “stealing” jobs meant for their people.

These protests have resulted in confrontations with foreign nationals, mostly from African countries, including Ghanaians and Nigerians, who are often brutalised and have their businesses either closed or vandalised by the protestors. The protests have also been captured, driving out foreign nationals from South African public schools and health facilities.

Leaders across the African continent have widely condemned the attacks on other African nationals, describing them as either “xenophobia” or “afrophobia”.

But who is behind these protests, which have happened almost every year for the past decade, and how did they start?

These current protests are organised by an anti-illegal immigrant group called March-on-March, which was established by South African media personality and social activist Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma, a 39-year-old mother.

Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma is a radio presenter based in Durban and is best known for hosting “The Cruise” on Vuma FM. She is reported to have worked at multiple radio stations in South Africa, including Vibe FM, Inanda FM, and Gagasi FM. In 2020, she won the Best Female Radio Presenter award at the KZN Entertainment Awards.

Ngobese-Zuma established March-on-March in 2024 to bring some spotlight to the issue of illegal immigration in South Africa and also demand that South African citizens be prioritised in healthcare and public services.

The group is currently advocating for enhanced border control measures and stricter enforcement of immigration regulations in South Africa, which it says is to protect national security and ensure fair resource allocation.

It is also fighting for policies that prioritise South African citizens in job markets and ensure fair employment opportunities without unfair competition from undocumented workers, and is also campaigning to ensure that public services — healthcare, education, and social benefits — are accessible to South African citizens without being strained by undocumented migration.

In a recent interview, Ngobese-Zuma refuted assertions that the actions of her movement amount to xenophobia and afrophobia.

She accused foreign nationals of being responsible for the high rate of crime in South Africa, adding that they are also serving as cheap labour and taking over jobs that are meant for the people of her country.

“We're coming under attack from all across Africa for standing up for ourselves. And the quickest thing that they do, these other people from outside of South Africa, is to label us as xenophobic. You know, people who are not even in South Africa, who don't even know what we're going through, they don't want to listen to what we're complaining about.

“We've lived with people from outside South Africa, actually, for 32 years, 32 years in millions and millions of them, but if you walk right down the road, you'll find that they now are taking over buildings, there's prostitution, there's drugs, there's cartels, there's mafias. Everything in this country is a fertile ground for criminals to thrive,” she fumed.

She added, “So we're not getting the best of the best when it comes to immigrants. We're getting those immigrants who are running away from their countries because they know that they are criminal elements, and our government is just letting them be because they want to paint them as victims. They're not victims.”

'Sack the Nigerians in Your Country': Watch full video of attack on Ghanaian by South Africans

Watch her interview below:



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