Anti-illegal immigration activist and podcaster Ngizwe Mchunu has renewed his call for authorities to crack down on undocumented foreign nationals, saying police must do more to enforce immigration laws and combat crime.
Mchunu was speaking outside the Hillbrow Police Station in Johannesburg on Wednesday after participating in an anti-illegal immigration march. Organisers later met with South African Police Service (SAPS) officials for an update on government efforts to address illegal immigration and related criminal activity.
Addressing supporters, Mchunu said the police had a responsibility to ensure that immigration laws were enforced and that undocumented foreign nationals were removed from the country through lawful processes.
“What is important is that we have to go inside and listen to what they called us for,” he said.
Mchunu also raised concerns about drug-related crime and the presence of undocumented foreign nationals in Johannesburg buildings.
“On the drug problems we have, and foreign nationals who don’t want to leave and they are in this building that should be owned by us,” he said.
He further called on law enforcement authorities to intensify efforts to tackle crime and hold police officers accused of criminal activity accountable.
“They must tell us how many police have they got rid of who are doing crime,” he said.
Mchunu’s appearance at Wednesday’s demonstration comes two days after the anti-illegal immigration movement March and March announced that it was cutting ties with him.
The organisation accused Mchunu of being an alleged government infiltrator, a claim he has publicly rejected.
Wednesday’s march began at Kwa Mai Mai in Johannesburg’s CBD before proceeding to Hillbrow Police Station and Yeoville Clinic. Organisers said the demonstration was intended to highlight concerns about illegal immigration, crime and the enforcement of South Africa’s immigration laws.
The protest forms part of a series of anti-illegal immigration demonstrations held in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal in recent months. Activists have called for tighter border controls, faster deportation processes and stronger action against criminal syndicates they allege involve undocumented foreign nationals.
The government has maintained that immigration enforcement must be conducted within the framework of the law and the Constitution, while continuing operations targeting undocumented migrants and cross-border crime.
