••”We cannot fold our arms while our best brains are slaughtered,” says Senate President.
Nigeria’s Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has condemned the killing of a Nigerian surgeon in South Africa, describing the reported attack—allegedly carried out by a local mechanic—as “disturbing and unacceptable.”
Speaking during plenary, Akpabio expressed deep concern about a growing wave of violence targeting Nigerians abroad and said he had already taken “personal action” on the matter. He urged a coordinated legislative response, calling for joint engagement between Nigeria’s National Assembly and the South African Parliament.
“The graphic details surrounding the killing are so distressing that, if you watch those videos, you will not be able to sleep,” he said, adding that he planned to meet with South African lawmakers and then report back to the Senate. “I have taken personal action already… but this collaborative effort—this joint decision between the House of Representatives and the Senate to engage the South African Parliament—is very important.”
Akpabio described the killing as senseless, alleging the surgeon was attacked on the mistaken belief that he was taking local jobs. He urged members of both parliaments to raise the issue formally in South Africa and to demand that their counterparts either condemn or applaud the conduct of their citizens.
“The issue goes beyond rhetoric,” he said. “People who come to do legitimate business, even tourists to South Africa, are being killed as if they are going to work… If prayers are not enough, then we strengthen the prayers and take action from there.”
He called for concrete measures to protect Nigerians abroad and pressed colleagues to pursue an immediate, coordinated response.
