The current wave of attacks against foreign nationals is a clear sign that state security in general, and crime intelligence in particular, are very weak.

This violence, in the main, is not about xenophobia. Xenophobia is just an unintended consequence of the economic problems that the government has failed to deal with.

The people who are busy looting shops and attacking foreign nationals are not doing so because they hate them. They are doing so because they happen to be easy targets.

Our government should have dealt with this mess before it even began if our crime intelligence was effective.

The government needs to escalate efforts to ensure that there is peace in our land. They need to implement our immigration laws so that foreign nationals can be monitored, like when they are engaging in the illegal drug trade and human trafficking.

I am also disappointed that even the minister of police failed to treat this matter seriously. Why did he cancel his appointment with the people from the hostels in Jeppe? Whatever the reason, it can't be more important than dealing with issues of national importance that put state security at risk.

We also need to help the government in fighting this demon, and we need to speak with one voice against crime and ultimately xenophobia.

Tom Mhlanga, Braamfontein