Anti-illegal immigration activist Nkosikhona “Phakel’umthakathi” Ndabandaba has declared that he wants to become South Africa’s next president, saying he intends to ensure that police use sjamboks against foreign nationals who are in the country illegally.
“I’m going to be PRESIDENT of this country, I WANT to be president of this country,” Ndabandaba said.
His remarks come amid growing tensions surrounding immigration enforcement and protests targeting undocumented foreign nationals in parts of South Africa.
On Monday, 19 October 2026, Ndabandaba led a march in Daveyton, Ekurhuleni, where protesters called for foreign nationals accused of operating businesses illegally to close their shops and leave the country.
According to TimesLIVE, Ndabandaba argued that undocumented foreign nationals should leave until South Africa’s immigration systems and border controls had been addressed.
He has also called for asylum applications to be revoked, demanding that applicants leave the country while the government works to strengthen immigration controls.
Calls for tougher immigration enforcement
Ndabandaba’s comments come against the backdrop of renewed anti-immigration protests and tensions in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal.
Recent demonstrations have coincided with disputes surrounding the processing of asylum applications following a Constitutional Court ruling affecting access to the asylum system.
The government has maintained that immigration laws must be enforced through lawful procedures and that concerns about undocumented immigration do not justify intimidation or violence against foreign nationals.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has previously warned that taking immigration enforcement into private hands amounts to vigilantism, emphasising that such responsibilities belong to authorised state officials.
Ndabandaba’s statement about police using sjamboks against foreign nationals raises questions about the methods he would support if he were to hold political office. His declaration, however, does not constitute government policy, and no change to the law has been announced on the basis of his remarks.
His comments place his political ambitions alongside his hard-line position on immigration, as debate over border control, asylum applications and the treatment of foreign nationals continues across the country.
