ROLIHLAHLA MANDELA; 94 YEARS ON

     

NELSON ON HIS SICK BED

Life seems to be cruel to some persons, while others are begging to escape death in order to achieve their lifelong dreams, others seems to narrowly or successfully escape its sting. I would say, Nelson Mandela is one of such persons.

His name was never Nelson from birth; he was born as Rolihlahla Mandela into the Madiba clan in Mvezo, Transkei, on July 18, 1918, to Nonqaphi Nosekeni and Nkosi Mphakanyiswa Gadla Mandela, principal counsellor to the Acting King of the Thembu people, Jongintaba Dalindyebo.

Nelson became a part of his identity when his teacher Miss Mdingane gave him the name in accordance with the custom to give all school children “Christian” names.

His dream of making his own contribution to the freedom struggle of his people began when he heard the elder’s stories of his ancestors’ valour during the wars of resistance.

And when one takes a walk down memory lane, one will agree with me that he has lived a fulfilled life, his activities as an activist has made a great impact on lives and is still felt around the world.

SOUTH AFRICANS PRAYING FOR NELSON

Nelson Mandela has seen better days here on earth; going through series of imprisonment has left him sick for most years of his life. You can imagine that on March 31, 1982, Nelson Mandela was transferred to Polls moor Prison in Cape Town and later returned to the prison in November 1985 after prostate surgery.

He has been frail and in poor health for several years and it’s believed his lung infection stems from the tuberculosis he contracted in the 1980s while working in a prison quarry at the Robben Island jail.

It got so bad that his frequent visits to the prison earned him reputation which grew steadily. He was widely accepted as the most significant black leader in South Africa and became a potent symbol of resistance as the anti-apartheid movement gathered strength.

I could vividly picture in my mind, the prison walls smiling to him whenever they see him approaching because he had become a regular visitor. He kept dropping out of school for a course he knew will one day be attained. Most of those who fought with him, I guess have long gone back to mother earth and to me; it seems death has rejected him.

Even as he lay on his sick bed, Africans still wish to have him around irrespective of ill health, he is 94 years! No doubt but he seems to successfully dodge the cold arms of death though most part of his body has began failing him.

 South Africans still rally round the table of prayer asking the Almighty to keep him strong. Obviously, that could be the possible reason he still leaves on, if it’s possible to have him around till eternity, Africans will still be glad to have him around.

 When someone who is very old passes away, people say he or she has gone home. I think those are some of the things we should be thinking about.

His life has been an inspiration to all oppressed and deprived, to all who are opposed to oppression and deprivation. Fondly called the ‘father of the nation’, Mandela has been mostly absent from the political scene for the past decade.

And he remains an enduring symbol of the struggle against racism even when he dies.