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Flying Touareg
26th Mar 2008, 08:23
The Nigerian Consulate in Johannesburg yesterday said a total of 84 Nigerians fell victims of armed robbery attacks last year at the O.R.Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Consular Officer-in -charge of Nigeria Community Relations, at the consulate, Mr Chris Iruala, made this known in an interview with the Southern Africa Correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Johannesburg.
He said the victims included a former presidential candidate, whose names he, however, refused to disclose.
``This number only represents those who officially reported their robbery cases to the consulate and who were issued the emergency travelling certificates (ETC),''Iruala said.
Although he said Nigerians were not the only victims of those unabated robbery attacks at the airport, Iruala, however, decried their frequency.
``It is becoming more of an embarrassment and a worrisome issue that the number of Nigerians who fall victim is of concern to us,''he said.
NAN investigation showed that among the victims and one of those issued ETC, was a one-time presidential candidate under the defunct NRC from the northern part of the country.
Another victim was a former Managing Director of a government-owed media outfit, who was attacked and left stranded,with all his belongings and money taken away by the robbers.
A consulate source told NAN that the actual number of victims should be in the neighbourhood of 500.``Some either do not bother to report or do not know where and what the proceduresare.``But you only get to know and hear of it when other Nigerians talk about it when they come to the consulate for passport or for other official matters,'' the source added.
President of the Nigerian Union in South Africa, Mr Jason Usuanfor, corroborated the story.
He said: ``With all modesty, the number of Nigerians robbed last year in this country either at the airport or those followed and eventually robbed cannot be less than 1,000.
``We are only appealing to Nigerians to always be conscious of their environment and be onthe alert at all times when they are cominginto South Africa.''

http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=106924

LittleMo
26th Mar 2008, 08:39
It may be callous as nobody should have to endure the horror of an armed robbery but damn it's ironic...
Not that it makes it right or justifiable but I wonder what the stats are of South Africans being affected crimes commited by Nigerians in SA is...

Running off now to take cover from the onslaught that is surely coming....:}

Gooneybird
26th Mar 2008, 08:57
Whilst I also agree that no-one should have to endure being robbed, to hear a Nigerian complain about security issues for it's citizens...... WTF!

Solid Rust Twotter
26th Mar 2008, 09:25
The SA Police are in denial about all this and continue to claim they have no knowledge of any problems. Unfortunately, that's a general reflection on how they do their jobs and goes a long way toward explaining why the crime stats are so high in SA. Incompetence and corruption is not going to rid the country of this crime epidemic but nothing will change for the better as the rot goes all the way to the highest levels of govt. The SA public need to hold govt accountable at the polling booth but that will never happen.

Revnetwork
26th Mar 2008, 11:14
No one should be subjected to criminal activity especially violent crime.

When the Nigerians complain about those robbed at the airport in JNB, a few in SA complain about crimes commited by Nigerians in SA, but the number of South Africans affected by crimes in Nigeria (either at the airports or further afield) is quite low.
Makes me wonder why Nigeria has such a bad rep when SA seems to be worse.

exflygirl
5th Apr 2008, 00:03
Revnetwork... or maybe because the majority of the Nigerian criminals are in South Africa...the land of rich pickings and Police that sit back and do nothing.

lowbypass
5th Apr 2008, 00:50
I had been to HILBROW in Jnb once and was told 15 yrs ago it looked like Sandton.
...and was told it could "take a week to clean it up".

:zzz:

AircraftCarrier
5th Apr 2008, 02:08
There is no doubt that Nigerians have participated in various criminal acts worldwide. The one that placed them on the world map has been the advance fee fraud. But if we are intelligent enough to go down to the core of it, the fraud victims are also a scum of the societies they live in. If not for the deterring mechanisms put in place in their countries, they would have defrauded their own people too! Both the supplier and the demander are all criminals and don’t deserve any sympathy. It’s all about one bad guy taking out another baddy in gang warfare! But to say that it is a justification to rob an innocent and law abiding Nigerian or any other good citizen, is just so unfair.
How can people in their righteous minds see all the heartbreaking pictures and video footage that comes out of Africa, collude with another African planning rob the poor of what is left of them? Now think about that!
I guess at the end of the day, the way we look at crime depends on who commits it. Find time to watch the movie/true story called “CATCH ME IF YOU CAN”. The criminal was portrayed as a smart guy! In his interview I watched a few years back, he was even given a job by the CIA or FBI or so, on a very huge wage. If he was Nigerian……hmmm, we all know the answer don’t we?
No criminal is any better than the other, no matter where that person comes from or looks like.

Coleman Myers
5th Apr 2008, 20:22
As the techniques become sophisticated ie: some pax are singled out as they disembark and then nailed as they drive off in their hire car, its fair to assume that our South African friends were trained by somebody else .. pat on the back to the Nigerians ... I cant train this lot to do anything, criminal or otherwise !!!.

M1kev
12th Apr 2008, 11:13
It's a well-known fact that Nigeria is very much a cash economy, so most Nigerian visitors will carry large amounts of cash. The question is, how can you know for sure what a person has on him, his nationality and the address he's heading to? Easy, use his customs declaration form, aka robbery-application! Every passenger has to fill one in, and it contains the address you're heading to, items being imported and even the amounts of cash and currencies in your posession. You have customs officials colluding with criminals outside. And no, I don't have proof, the proof is in the numbers of victims and m.o., and it's not just Nigerians having trouble! Best bet is to avoid JNB at all costs, or travel in large groups. Crime and corruption is a national sport in South Africa, and don't expect much help from the police either. As long as you are aware of these issues you will enjoy your time there, well, usually...

M1kev
12th Apr 2008, 11:17
Can't say it ever looked liked Sandton, Melville maybe. Same with Yeoville. Cleaned up in 1 week? Err, if you send in the army maybe... :E

Flightsimman
12th Apr 2008, 16:56
It looks like they have dropped the customs form requirement as I didn't have to fill one in this time flying from Singapore to Joburg.

I was told by a South African that I was sitting next to that this is indeed the reason why it has been stopped.

Will be interesting to see if I need to fill one out on the way back to JNB from LOS.

M1kev
13th Apr 2008, 09:41
SA customs officials also don't like working weekends or getting to work on time in the mornings. Wonder if you still have to call officials yourself when landing after hours at Wonderboom. Gotta love SA!

atedo
13th Apr 2008, 11:24
About 10032008, I saw on the telly when Govt asked that the column for address should be removed from the form as they are in the know that this was the reason for the followed attacks. I think one of their returning diplomat was robbed on getting to his hotel in JNB.

The declaration must be stopped completely as the customs officers are the ones doing all these. How do the criminals know who own each Form?:confused::(

SA Police need to do more as this may affect Tourism in their place.

Solid Rust Twotter
13th Apr 2008, 11:30
FAWB no longer a port of entry/exit. Skullduggery is suspected to ensure FALA gets the international business.

RETDPI
13th Apr 2008, 17:49
Can confirm that filling out of customs forms, as of last week at least, had been suspended.

bandas
13th Apr 2008, 19:44
I would say you don't even have to declare a form anywhere in the world to be robbed afterwards on your way to the hotel or home. The solutoin is not to carry too much cash on you, use credit cards. Has anyone ever thought about the driver taking you to the hotel or home from the airport? These guys look so friendly and we tend to tell them everything while we are in their taxi.... Let's think about this.:confused:

SIERRA ECHO XRAY
13th Apr 2008, 21:07
To my Ogaz from Nairaland ........just pay me R 10,000 by western union prior to arrival and I will guarantee you security ..heh....:E