The cases of food poisoning after eating food bought from spaza shops around the country, including the deaths of six children in Soweto, is a matter of national concern requiring every effort to find the source of the poison and give closure to the bereaved parents.

The poison has been identified ‒ a pesticide commonly, but unlawfully, being used to deal with rats, a common problem in the informal township economy.

However, authorities have not yet found a link between the chemical and the spaza shop where the dead children bought chips.

Despite this, government officials, and private individuals and organisations, persist in demonising the informal shops on which millions of township residents depend for their daily needs, with particular emphasis on those owned by immigrants.

It is no secret that the spaza shop industry has become dominated by foreigners, but this has been through ingenuity and hard work, rather than the unproven underhanded tactics touted by their detractors.

Research has shown, for example, that where foreigners form co-operatives to buy in bulk and get better prices, many locals prefer to work alone, making them uncompetitive.

Certainly many foreign-owned shops fall short in hygiene standards, but so do businesses owned by locals.

And it is certainly true that many foreigners abuse our hospitality and commit a variety of crimes here in South Africa, as it is true that South Africans commit crime abroad and the vast majority of crime here at home.

Instead of using inflammatory language which risks exacerbating an already charged situation, those in authority should work within their respective ambits to address shortcomings which pose public health and other risks.

Instead of promoting a victimhood mentality and allowing jealousy to fester, rather foster closer working relationships between foreign- and locally-owned businesses so that both may prosper.

The 2008 xenophobic attacks which left 60 dead and earned South Africa the scorn of the world were not so long ago that we can have forgotten the impact of irresponsible, violent rhetoric.

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Spectre of 2008 looms large