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S. Africa not deploying troops to Nigeria to attack Boko Haram: SANDF

Xinhua, March 10, 2016 Adjust font size:

The South Africa National Defence Force (SANDF) on Wednesday dismissed allegations that it would send troops to Nigeria to help fight Boko Haram.

"There is no such decision to send any military elements by the RSA (Republic of South Africa) to assist with the fight against Boko Haram," SANDF spokesperson Siphiwe Dhlamini said in a press statement.

Speculation was rife in the media that President Jacob Zuma's two-day state visit to Nigeria that started on Tuesday was to facilitate talks on the deployment of South African Special Forces to fight Boko Haram, an Islamic extremist group.

The allegations were also fuelled after South Africa Defence Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula met with her Nigerian counterpart Mansur Dan Ali earlier this week.

In a statement following talks with Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, Zuma said the two reiterated the need for joint regional and continental efforts to combat terrorism and extremist groups.

"Considering our commitment to finding African solutions to African problems, we have agreed to work together to deal with these challenges," Zuma said.

South Africa condemns in the strongest possible terms all forms of terrorism and extremism, he said.

During the visit, Zuma reaffirmed Pretoria's commitment to creating a strong bond and bilateral relations with Nigeria. But experts say the two countries have some problems to resolve.

"During his visit in Nigeria, President Zuma should find out the truth about allegations that Nigeria is targeting South African companies. If there is any truth in it that should be dealt with," Dianna Games, Executive Director of the South Africa-Nigeria Chamber of Commerce, told Xinhua on Wednesday.

Nigerian President Buhari has accused the South African telecommunication company MTN of fuelling the Boko Haram insurgency and contributing to the abduction and killing of people in his country.

MTN was fined for 5.2 billion U.S. dollars last year by Nigerian authorities for failing to block the SIM cards of unregistered users. The fine was reduced later to 3.9 billion U.S. dollars upon negotiations and the company is still in talks with Nigerian authorities over further reducing the fine.

The company hopes that Buhari will intervene and the fine be slashed. But the president is adamant that the issue should be resolved by the concerned parties.

Some SA companies like MultiChoice and and Woolworths are also accused of profiting from the Nigerian market while pushing for monopoly, said Gwinyai Dzinesa, an international relations lecturer at the Rhodes University.

Despite the problems, South Africa and Nigeria are determined to boost current trade relations. During Zuma's visit, the bi-national agreement between the two countries has been elevated to presidential status with Zuma and Buhari now leading it.

The leaders of African's economic giants have also agreed to meet once a year for the purpose of increasing trade and investment. Enditem