Johannesburg - A number of South Africans expressed concern amid the Department of Defence (DOD) defence of their stance of hiring foreign national Edem Abotsi to occupy a high-ranking position in the country’s army.
Abotsi is based in the Defence Head Quarters Armscor building in Erasmuskloof and is being paid handsomely for the position he holds.
Following social media queries questioning the status and citizenship of Abotsi, the department responded by saying that Ghanaian Abotsi, who is the acting chief financial officer (CFO), has been in South Africa since 1991 and was naturalised as a citizen of the country in 1999, after being in the country nine years.
This raised more questions as to what type of visa allowed a foreign national to stay in the country for nine years.
The department’s head of communication, Siphiwe Dlamini, confirmed that Abotsi has been in the department since 2014 as Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Director Financial Services.
“Subsequent to the departure of the CFO, he has occupied the acting CFO position. Abotsi has been legally in the country since 1991, is a naturalised South African citizen since 1999, and is a qualified auditor and accountant,” Dlamini said.
Dlamini added that Abotsi was also at the office of the Auditor General for 14 years and left as a senior audit manager.
“It is malicious and unfair to associate Abotsi with illegal nationals who are in the country and are alleged to be involved in criminal activities. Abotsi has been in the country legally and has subjected himself to all the laws of South Africa that regulate foreign nationals wishing to live, work, and eventually become South African citizens as required by the laws of the land,” said Dlamini.
The explanation given by the department was criticised by many who took to social media platform X.
X user Jabulano Gumbi Mtshali wrote: “But SANDF, you cannot allow someone of foreign descent, even when naturalised, to ascend to such a position; it is risky. In fact, no security forces must have ‘naturalised’ South Africans. Those fields are strictly for South African-born citizens. You are risking our security!”
Mtshali asked what would happen if someone of foreign descent went back home to leak the country’s secrets to enemies.
Another user, going by the name Proudly Mzansi, wrote: “This person will leak information to his people about the state of our security. The ANC can no longer be in government; we must get rid of them next year.”
A user by the name of IScathulo SePhara wrote: “Meet Edem Abotsi, a foreigner who somehow received citizenship and then immediately got a high position in SANDF. The ANC has turned our country’s national intelligence arm into a joke. Now we know why all our borders continue to be porous, and why morale is low in SANDF.”
However, a few people said Abotsi was not a security threat because he arrived in the country when he was young and attended school there.
X user PrinceM Muimbi wrote: “But he is a fully South African mos, isn’t it? According to our laws, he is a citizen.”
The Star