Visa Drama: How South Africa Sent Back Africa's Second Richest Man to Lagos
- Abdul Samad Rabiu revealed that he was denied entry into South Africa after arriving in Cape Town with a visa that had expired a day earlier
- He said the incident happened in February 2025, and he was eventually sent back to Nigeria after spending hours at the airport
- Rabiu said some European travellers were allowed into South Africa without visas, while Africans still faced strict travel restrictions
Legit.ng journalist Victor Enengedi has over a decade's experience covering energy, MSMEs, technology, banking and the economy.
The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of BUA Group, Abdul Samad Rabiu, has spoken about an experience in South Africa where he was denied entry after arriving with an expired visa, even as travellers from Europe were reportedly allowed into the country without visas.
According to The Guardian, Rabiu shared the story while delivering a presentation titled “Africa at Scale: Capital, Policy, and the Architecture of Growth” at the ongoing Africa CEO Forum in Kigali.
Source: UGC
Turned back after arrival in Cape Town
According to the businessman, the incident happened in February 2025 when he travelled from Lagos to Cape Town for the Mining Indaba conference.
He explained that after landing early in the morning, immigration officials discovered that his South African visa had expired just one day earlier — an error he said went unnoticed by his travel team before departure.
Rabiu said he spent several hours at the airport while efforts were made to resolve the issue, but he was eventually refused entry and sent back to Nigeria.
“Unfortunately, our crew did not check the visa to ensure the visa were valid. We were there for four hours, but at the end of the day, I had to turn back. I was turned back to Lagos."
He admitted responsibility for the mistake, noting that the expired visa was an oversight on his part and his team’s.
Recall that Rabiu recently overtook South Africa's Johann Rupert to become Africa’s second-richest man.
Concern over unequal treatment
Despite accepting fault, Rabiu said what troubled him most was the difference in treatment between African travellers and visitors from Europe.
He claimed that while he and his team faced delays over visa requirements, passengers arriving on multiple European flights were allowed into South Africa without visas.
According to him, watching foreign travellers gain easy access while an African citizen was denied entry in another African country highlighted a deeper problem with mobility across the continent.
Rabiu argued that African nations need to rethink policies that make movement within Africa more difficult for Africans than for visitors from outside the continent.
He called for improved regional cooperation and easier travel access for Africans across African borders.
Source: Getty Images
BUA Foods becomes Nigeria's most valuable company
In related news, Legit.ng earlier reported that BUA Foods Plc emerged as the most valuable company on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).
Its market capitalisation climbed to N11.3 trillion ($7.5 billion) as of September 19, 2025, just three years after its listing on January 5, 2022.
Since debuting on the NGX at about N1.15 trillion, BUA Foods has seen nearly a 10-fold rise in market capitalisation.
Source: Legit.ng
