Internet trolls from South Africa have struck up a new trend on social media. While the rest of the world has called on the dissolution of Nigeria’s infamous Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), a faction of xenophobes has encouraged the killings of innocent protesters.
SARS protests: What’s the latest
In fact, the top trending topic in South Africa is ‘SARS must rise’, a direct negation of the efforts of many prominent persons who have stepped forward to call for an end to the scale of violence we have witnessed in Nigeria, this past couple of weeks.
What the Nigerian government did to its people is an extreme human rights violation. At least 73 people were massacred by the country’s armed security forces at the Lekii toll gate in Lagos, on Wednesday.
Videos and images of the dead victims piled up on social media, getting international condemnation from the likes of former vice president of the United States Hillary Clinton and former US president Barrack Obama.
Why has Ramaphosa been mute about Nigeria?
Things have cooled down since Lagos implemented a 24-hour curfew in the city, putting an end to a violent 12-day protest.
South Africans have, for the most part, participated in calls to end SARS. Celebrities and politicians used their platforms to condemn the actions of the Nigerian government and a lot of criticism was placed on President Cyril Ramaphosa and his cabinet for failing to respond quicker than the international community.
Till this day, the African region has yet to hear from Ramaphosa on the events that transpired in Nigeria. Even more shocking, however, is a new narrative that has brewed from the pits of South African Twitter.
South African xenophobes demand ‘SARS must rise’
A faction of homophobes have sprung up with ‘SARS must rise’ tweets, and actually celebrated the pain and suffering of Nigerian people.
The general consensus in these tweets is that South Africa should not concern itself with Nigerians since “we’re being abused enough in our country by Nigerian drug dealers.”
Here are some of the despicable tweets we sourced on the topic:
NOTICE: The words expressed in these tweets do not necessarily reflect the views of Swisher Post, its parent company IWUW Publications or third-party affiliates