Around any deathbed, the person dying and his memory should be treated with respect. This is the most significant deathbed South Africa has ever had the responsibility to deal with and most probably ever will have. Unfortunately, most people involved have made a mess of it. In fact, it’s been an absolute shambles. From court interdicts dealing essentially with Madiba’s own family’s greed and bickering to making a complete public relations hash of informing the world about his medical condition, this has been a Phd thesis in how not to do it.
Around this part of the world (the UK) a staunch ANC supporter like Andrew Feinstein is tweeting that the party he “proudly” represented, the one of Mandela, Sisulu and Luthuli is no more. It “succumbed to personal enrichment b4 all else”.
As Mandela goes, so will the ANC gradually also die. The first will be mourned forever, the second should be celebrated.
*Piet van Niekerk is a South African journalist living in London. This is his own opinion and not necessarily the opinion of SA Promo.
