Mandela Park gets "A Betta Tomorrow"

Anthony Minott Photos

Kevin Smith, the brainchild of ‘A Betta Tomorrow’, was in high spirits as his hard work bore fruit at Mandela Park, St Andrew, which was transformed into a worship centre at the weekend.

Gospel artiste Goddy Goddy, now a minister of religion, paused his witty lyrics to minister to the people and bring souls to the Kingdom of God.

He closed by delivering some of his hit songs. Goddy Goddy, dubbed the ‘Ghetto Priest’, because of his work with unfortunates in downtown Kingston, said he turned a blind eye on touring and the luxury lifestyle to minister to a congregation and do God’s work.

He admitted the money was far less than when he was a gospel artiste, but its more fulfilling to him.

“‘A Betta Tomorrow’ started in Montego Bay, St James, in 2010, and it has been to places such as Junction, St Elizabeth; and the inner-cities of the Corporate Area,” said Smith.

“The main purpose of the initiative is to bring the church to the street. Sometimes people are busy at work and school, and don’t have the time to be in church, so we bring the church to them.”

“‘A Betta Tomorrow’ means that we have Jesus Christ in our lives and, if that is realised, then we will have better homes, better communities and a better country.”

He made reference to Matthew 6:33, to reiterate his stance.

Artistes such as Ryan Mark and wife, Chrissy D, Kareem, Omari, and others, gave notable performances.

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Mandela Park gets "A Betta Tomorrow"

Supreme Court reserves judgement in Mandela bus-lane challenge

The Supreme Court has reserved judgement in the application by transport operators challenging the creation of  a lane on the Mandela Highway for Jamaica Urban Transit Company, JUTC, buses.

Lawyers for the operators, the JUTC, the police and the Office of  Utilities Regulation, OUR, completed arguments yesterday.

Justice Lennox Campbell is to rule next week whether leave should be granted to the operators to seek a judicial review. The operators want the Ministry of  Transport to change the use of  the dedicated bus lane.

They say it should not be exclusive to the JUTC and other public passenger vehicles should be allowed to use it.

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Supreme Court reserves judgement in Mandela bus-lane challenge

Mandela discharged from hospital, still critical

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Nelson Mandela, 95, was discharged from hospital on Sunday while still in critical condition and was taken by ambulance to his Johannesburg home where he will receive intensive care, the office of South Africa’s president said.

On a sunny but cold morning, an ambulance took the anti-apartheid leader home from the hospital in the capital, Pretoria, about 31 miles away. Mandela had been hospitalized for nearly three months, after being admitted on June 8 for what the government described as a recurring lung infection.Mandela’s condition “is at times unstable,” said President Jacob Zuma’s statement Sunday.“His home has been reconfigured to allow him to receive intensive care there,” the statement said. “The health care personnel providing care at his home are the very same who provided care to him in hospital. If there are health conditions that warrant another admission to hospital in future, this will be done.”The statement Sunday from Zuma’s office said during his stay in hospital Mandela “vacillated between serious to critical and at times unstable” and that “despite the difficulties imposed by his various illnesses, he, as always, displays immense grace and fortitude.”Referring to Mandela by his clan name, the statement added: “Madiba has been treated by a large medical team from the military, academia, private sector and other public health spheres. We thank all the health professionals at the hospital for their dedication.”The government has released few details about Mandela’s condition, citing patient confidentiality and appealing for Mandela’s privacy and dignity to be respected. But rumours and unconfirmed reports about Mandela’s health have persisted on social media and other forums, fuelled in part by a feud within the Mandela family.In a court case stemming from a family dispute over burial sites, some members of Mandela’s extended family recently said in court documents that Mandela was being kept alive by a breathing machine and faces “impending death.” That account was disputed by Zuma’s office, which denied Mandela was “vegetative” but acknowledged his condition was grave.Mandela has been particularly vulnerable to respiratory problems since contracting tuberculosis during his 27-year imprisonment. The bulk of that period was spent on Robben Island, a prison off the coast of Cape Town where Mandela and other apartheid-era prisoners spent part of the time toiling in a limestone quarry.There has been an outpouring of concern in South Africa and around the world for the transformative figure who led the tense shift from apartheid’s white minority rule to democracy two decades ago in a spirit of reconciliation.Zuma urged South Africans to accept that Mandela had grown old and frail, saying all they could do was pray for him. During his hospitalization well-wishers delivered flowers and messages of support to the hospital where he was being treated, and prayer sessions were held around the country.Mandela, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, is feted around the world as a towering figure of reconciliation. Despite being jailed for his prominent role in opposing white racist rule, Mandela was seemingly free of rancour on his release in 1990, becoming the unifying leader who steered South Africa through a delicate transition to all-race elections that propelled him to the presidency four years later.The United Nations has recognized Mandela’s birthday, July 18, as an international day to honour themes of activism, democracy and responsibility embodied by the former leader.Like our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/jamaicaobserverFollow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/JamaicaObserver

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Mandela discharged from hospital, still critical

Mandela discharged from hospital, returns home

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Nelson Mandela, 95, was discharged from hospital on yesterday while still in critical condition and was taken by ambulance to his Johannesburg home where he will receive intensive care, the office of South Africa’s president said.

On a sunny but cold morning, an ambulance took the anti-apartheid leader home from the hospital in the capital, Pretoria, about 31 miles away. Mandela had been hospitalised for nearly three months, after being admitted on June 8 for what the government described as a recurring lung infection.Mandela’s condition “is at times unstable,” said President Jacob Zuma’s statement Sunday.“His home has been reconfigured to allow him to receive intensive care there,” the statement said. “The health care personnel providing care at his home are the very same who provided care to him in hospital. If there are health conditions that warrant another admission to hospital in future, this will be done.”The statement yesterday from Zuma’s office said during his stay in hospital Mandela “vacillated between serious to critical and at times unstable” and that “despite the difficulties imposed by his various illnesses, he, as always, displays immense grace and fortitude.”Referring to Mandela by his clan name, the statement added: “Madiba has been treated by a large medical team from the military, academia, private sector and other public health spheres. We thank all the health professionals at the hospital for their dedication.”The government has released few details about Mandela’s condition, citing patient confidentiality and appealing for Mandela’s privacy and dignity to be respected. But rumours and unconfirmed reports about Mandela’s health have persisted on social media and other forums, fuelled in part by a feud within the Mandela family.In a court case stemming from a family dispute over burial sites, some members of Mandela’s extended family recently said in court documents that Mandela was being kept alive by a breathing machine and faces “impending death.” That account was disputed by Zuma’s office, which denied Mandela was “vegetative” but acknowledged his condition was grave.Mandela has been particularly vulnerable to respiratory problems since contracting tuberculosis during his 27-year imprisonment. The bulk of that period was spent on Robben Island, a prison off the coast of Cape Town where Mandela and other apartheid-era prisoners spent part of the time toiling in a limestone quarry.There has been an outpouring of concern in South Africa and around the world for the transformative figure who led the tense shift from apartheid’s white minority rule to democracy two decades ago in a spirit of reconciliation.Zuma urged South Africans to accept that Mandela had grown old and frail, saying all they could do was pray for him. During his hospitalisation well-wishers delivered flowers and messages of support to the hospital where he was being treated, and prayer sessions were held around the country.Mandela, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, is feted around the world as a towering figure of reconciliation. Despite being jailed for his prominent role in opposing white racist rule, Mandela was seemingly free of rancour on his release in 1990, becoming the unifying leader who steered South Africa through a delicate transition to all-race elections that propelled him to the presidency four years later.The United Nations has recognised Mandela’s birthday, July 18, as an international day to honor themes of activism, democracy and responsibility embodied by the former leader.An ambulance transporting former South African president Nelson Mandela arrives at the home of the former statesman in Johannesburg, South Africa, yesterday. (PHOTO: AP)

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Mandela discharged from hospital, returns home

Expect traffic delays on Mandela Highway today

News

Thursday, August 29, 2013

THE flow of traffic on Mandela Highway in St Catherine is expected to be disrupted today as the National Works Agency (NWA) undertakes emergency work on sections of the busy thoroughfare.In a release yesterday, the NWA said that a section of both the eastern and western carriageways between White Marl and Caymanas Crossing, will be reduced to single-lane traffic.Stephen Shaw, manager of communication and customer services at the NWA, says the works — which will last for approximately five hours between 10:00 am and 3:00 pm — will entail removing badly deteriorated sections of the road and patching with asphaltic concrete.“The NWA is advising motorists to proceed with caution while travelling along the Mandela Highway… and to observe all posted warning signs and flag persons deployed to the area,” the works agency cautioned.

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Expect traffic delays on Mandela Highway today

Woman killed in Mandela Highway crash

Latest News

Thursday, July 18, 2013 | 9:45 AM

KINGSTON, Jamaica — A woman was killed in a motor vehicle crash along the Mandela Highway early this morning.Police have not yet released her identity.Reports are that the woman was driving a white Toyota Axio in an easterly direction at about 6:50 am towards Kingston when the crash occurred.Police said they were called to the scene where they saw the vehicle wrapped around a tree along the side of the road.A motorist claiming to be an eyewitness said that the woman was forced off the road by another driver travelling in a Toyota Rav 4.“This morning when me a drive pass and see what happen me rush out of me vehicle and tried to help her,” the male motorist said.The injured woman was rushed to the hospital where she was pronounced dead.-Kimmo MatthewsLike our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/jamaicaobserverFollow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/JamaicaObserverPolice view the ill-fated vehicle along Mandela Highway Thursday morning.( Photo Kimmo Matthews)

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Woman killed in Mandela Highway crash

Mandela "steadily improving" on 95th birthday

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South Africa celebrated Nelson Mandela’s 95th birthday with acts of charity on Thursday, a milestone capped by news that the former president’s health was improving after fears that he was close to death during ongoing hospital treatment.

“He continues to respond positively to treatment and we are encouraged by the progress he is making,” President Jacob Zuma said after visiting Mandela. A statement from Zuma’s office said Mandela was steadily improving.“We are proud to call this international icon our own as South Africans and wish him good health,” Zuma said in the statement. He thanked South Africans for supporting Mandela during his hospitalization with “undying love and compassion” and responding to a call to give the beloved figure “the biggest birthday celebration ever this year.”The anti-apartheid leader was taken to a Pretoria hospital on June 8 for treatment for a recurring lung infection. In previous announcements, the government said he was in critical but stable condition. Court documents filed by Mandela’s family earlier this month had said Mandela was on life support.Mandela is making “remarkable progress,” said one of his daughters, Zindzi, on Thursday, after tense weeks in which some South Africans talked about the possibility that Mandela was on the verge of dying.“We look forward to having him back at home soon,” the South African Press Association quoted Zindzi Mandela as saying during the government rollout of a digital ID card system.Ndileka Mandela, a granddaughter of Mandela, poured soup for poor children at a charity event and said her family had been unsure about whether her grandfather would live to see his birthday.“But because of the fighter that he is, he was able to fight a repressive system, and he was able, through God and everybody’s prayers, to make it today,” she said.Thursday also marked the 15th wedding anniversary of Mandela and Graca Machel, the former First Lady of Mozambique who has spent much of the time at her husband’s side during his illness.Many South Africans volunteered 67 minutes for charity to match what organizers said were the 67 years of public service by Mandela, leader of the fight against white minority rule.“We don’t only recognize him on this day. We put smiles on other people’s faces, we donate to other people less fortunate,” Thato Williams, a 13-year-old student, said during an assembly in Mandela’s honor at Melpark Primary School in Johannesburg. Some 700 students there sang “Happy Birthday” in a hall filled with posters created to honor Mandela’s contributions to peace and education.President Zuma opened low-cost housing for poor black and white families in the Pretoria area. South Africa is struggling with high unemployment, labor unrest, service delivery shortcomings and other social challenges that have dampened the expectations of a better life for black South Africans after the end of apartheid two decades ago.Retired archbishop Desmond Tutu helped to paint a school outside Cape Town, saying Mandela makes South Africans “walk tall” and urging compatriots to refrain from divisive behavior.Elsewhere, social workers, military commanders and private company employees others planted trees, cleaned classrooms and donated food, blankets and other basic necessities in poor areas. Doctors administered eye tests, inoculations and other medical treatments.Visiting Pretoria, European Union President Herman Van Rompuy packed food parcels and said his two sons were fans of Mandela, whom he described as “the brightest sun of South Africa.”The U.N has declared July 18 as Nelson Mandela International Day as a way of recognizing the Nobel Peace Prize winner’s contribution to reconciliation. A procession was held in India to honor Mandela. In Washington, U.S. congressional leaders planned a ceremony later Thursday.Mandela was jailed for 27 years under apartheid and led a difficult transition from apartheid to democracy, becoming president in all-race elections in 1994. He served one five-year term, evolving into a global statesman and pursuing charitable causes after that. He retired from public life years ago.“South Africa is a better place today than it was in 1994 and this is because of the contribution made by Madiba and his collective,” the ruling African National Congress, once led by Mandela, said in a statement.The ANC was the leading liberation movement during apartheid, and has dominated politics since the end of white rule. However, it has come under increasing criticism because of corruption scandals and frustration over poverty and other problems.In recent months, the ANC and opposition groups have sought to emphasize their connections to Mandela’s legacy in the fight for democracy, leading to accusations of political opportunism on both sides.F.W. de Klerk, the last president of the apartheid era, said in a statement that Mandela’s birthday “should be a time for quiet and respectful contemplation — and not for unseemly squabbling over the ownership of Mr Mandela’s heritage.”He continued: “Throughout his life he has been a loyal and stalwart member of the ANC — but I believe that through his example and through his unwavering commitment to national reconciliation — all South Africans, regardless of their race or political affiliation, can now proudly call him their own.”De Klerk shared the Nobel prize with Mandela in 1993 because he effectively negotiated his own government out of power, working on a political transition with Mandela that allayed fears of all-out racial conflict.Mandela’s former wife said she wanted to reassure South Africans who fear the eventual death of Mandela, a unifying figure, would open the way to unrest.“There are sometimes prophets of doom who say the country will come to a standstill,” said Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, herself a prominent figure in the anti-apartheid movement, in an interview with South Africa’s Radio 702.However, she said: “The country will solidify, come together and carry on.”Like our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/jamaicaobserverFollow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/JamaicaObserver

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Mandela "steadily improving" on 95th birthday

Sandals Foundation commemorates Mandela Day across the Caribbean

News

Thursday, July 18, 2013 | 5:06 PM

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica – The Sandals Foundation on July 18 commemorated the globally-recognized Mandela Day by educating more than 300 children across the Caribbean about the life and work of anti-apartheid activist and former South African President Nelson Mandela. The Sandals Foundation, in partnership with the South African High Commission in Jamaica, carried out its mission with children and children’s homes in Jamaica, Antigua, Saint Lucia, the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands.Every year on Mandela’s birthday, individuals and organisations across the world are asked to give 67 minutes of their time helping people to recognise their own ability to have a positive effect on society. This is to commemorate the 67 years Mandela, the first democratically elected president of South Africa and anti-apartheid activist, dedicated to the fight for human rights.“Nelson Mandela is a remarkable man who dedicated his entire life to effecting positive change. His impact has been felt across the world as people associate him with justice and humanitarianism,” said Heidi Clarke, Sandals Foundation director of programmes. “Every year that we celebrate Mandela Day, we are ensuring that his legacy lives on for future generations to cherish.”Activities for Mandela Day included talks and discussions at the Edward Gartland Youth Centre (Turks and Caicos); the Forward and Onward to College Upward to Success (FOCUS) group (The Bahamas); Lights on Day Camp (Antigua); Saint Lucia Crisis Centre (Saint Lucia); Clifton Boys Home (Whitehouse, Jamaica); West Haven Children’s Home (Negril, Jamaica), the SOS Children’s Home (Montego Bay, Jamaica), and in the Huddersfield Community (Ocho Rios, Jamaica).

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Sandals Foundation commemorates Mandela Day across the Caribbean

Sandals Foundation commemorates Mandela Day across the Caribbean

Latest News

Thursday, July 18, 2013 | 5:06 PM

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica – The Sandals Foundation on July 18 commemorated the globally-recognized Mandela Day by educating more than 300 children across the Caribbean about the life and work of anti-apartheid activist and former South African President Nelson Mandela. The Sandals Foundation, in partnership with the South African High Commission in Jamaica, carried out its mission with children and children’s homes in Jamaica, Antigua, Saint Lucia, the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands.Every year on Mandela’s birthday, individuals and organisations across the world are asked to give 67 minutes of their time helping people to recognise their own ability to have a positive effect on society. This is to commemorate the 67 years Mandela, the first democratically elected president of South Africa and anti-apartheid activist, dedicated to the fight for human rights.“Nelson Mandela is a remarkable man who dedicated his entire life to effecting positive change. His impact has been felt across the world as people associate him with justice and humanitarianism,” said Heidi Clarke, Sandals Foundation director of programmes. “Every year that we celebrate Mandela Day, we are ensuring that his legacy lives on for future generations to cherish.”Activities for Mandela Day included talks and discussions at the Edward Gartland Youth Centre (Turks and Caicos); the Forward and Onward to College Upward to Success (FOCUS) group (The Bahamas); Lights on Day Camp (Antigua); Saint Lucia Crisis Centre (Saint Lucia); Clifton Boys Home (Whitehouse, Jamaica); West Haven Children’s Home (Negril, Jamaica), the SOS Children’s Home (Montego Bay, Jamaica), and in the Huddersfield Community (Ocho Rios, Jamaica).Like our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/jamaicaobserverFollow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/JamaicaObserver

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Sandals Foundation commemorates Mandela Day across the Caribbean

Making music for Mandela

NELSON Mandela was in his 18th year of imprisonment on South Africa’s Robben Island when Jimmy Cliff visited the country in May 1980.

Though international opposition to South Africa’s Apartheid system was fierce, Cliff defied the stigma of being blacklisted and became the first Jamaican reggae artiste to perform in the renegade country.He did three shows in Soweto, Durban and Cape Town, playing to enthusiastic audiences, especially in Soweto, the impoverished township which was a flashpoint for the anti-Apartheid struggle.Copeland Forbes, Cliff’s road manager on the two-week trip, recalls apprehension in the singer’s camp when he was approached by a group of black South African promoters to perform in their country.“It was exciting for us, since most of us had never been to Africa. But we also knew about Apartheid and that people (including musicians and sportsmen) who went to South Africa were banned,” Forbes recalled.Cliff had been a superstar since the early 1970s through his starring role in the movie The Harder They Come. He had visited Africa several times and performed in Nigeria.Forbes says Cliff was hugely popular in South Africa. His cover of Bob Marley’s No Woman No Cry was an anthem there, while his I Am The Living album was also popular.The first show in Soweto was by far the largest, Forbes remembers. It attracted over 100,000 fans of all races who gave Cliff a rapturous welcome.“It was a moving sea of human beings… black, white, Indians. Everybody was shouting ‘Jimmy! Jimmy!” said Forbes. “There was also a lot of security with dogs.”Though they stayed in suitable accommodations, Cliff and his Oneness band experienced South Africa’s rigid colour barriers.“We went to the parks and stores and we saw signs marked ‘Whites only’ or ‘Blacks and Coloured,” said Forbes.During a break from shows, Cliff and his band went to Table Mountain, a scenic location in Cape Town overlooking Robben Island. They played bongo drums for most of the day in tribute to Mandela, a founding member of the African National Congress who had been imprisoned since 1962 for his fight against Apartheid.Forbes says Cliff was blacklisted briefly for his South African trip. There had been opposition to his visit by some militant blacks, but Forbes believes the general response among the native population was positive.“A Zulu warrior told me that it was Jimmy’s music that soothed him in tough times. To a lot of black people, we were like saviours,” he said.Nelson Mandela was freed from prison in 1990 after 27 years. Jimmy Cliff has not performed in South Africa since his historic sojourn 33 years ago.Jimmy Cliff (seated centre) and his band in South Africa in 1980. At right is Copeland Forbes, Cliff’s road manager for the two-week trip.

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Making music for Mandela

Mandela family fight over icon’s burial spot

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AP) — As Nelson Mandela remained in critical condition in hospital yesterday, a family feud over where the 94-year-old former president should be buried went to the courts, according to South Africa’s national broadcaster.

Mandela’s oldest daughter, Makaziwe, and 15 other family members have pressed a court application to get Mandela’s grandson to return the bodies of three of Mandela’s children to their original graves in the eastern rural village of Qunu, according to the SABC.The grandson, Mandla Mandela, acknowledges having reburied the three bodies 20 kilometres (13 miles) away in the Mvezo village, where he plans to create a Mandela shrine, hotel and football stadium, according to the South African Press Association.Grandson Mandla Mandela has until today to respond to the court filing, reports said.The anti-apartheid leader built his retirement home in Qunu and was living there until his repeated hospitalisations which started at the end of last year. Nelson Mandela attended the burial of his son at the family plot in Qunu in 2005, and it was widely expected that the leader himself will be buried there.But his grandson exhumed the bodies of Mandela’s three children and moved them to nearby Mvezo, which is the former president’s birthplace and where the grandson holds authority as chief.Eldest daughter Makaziwe and other Mandela family members want the family bodies returned to their original graves in Qunu, according to the reports.The family court struggle came as Mandela’s ex-wife said that he had improved in recent days, but remained critical.Winnie Madikizela-Mandela gave the update Friday while speaking to journalists outside Mandela’s former home in Soweto.“I’m not a doctor, but I can say that from what he was a few days ago there is great improvement,” said Madikizela-Mandela, who is a member of South Africa’s Parliament.Madikizela-Mandela pleaded with the media to “understand the sensitivities and the feeling of the family.”His daughter Makaziwe Mandela was among the family members who arrived at the Pretoria hospital yesterday. The ministers of health and defence also visited, the South African Press Association reported.Outside the Pretoria hospital yesterday, a man flying a drone-like object with a camera attached was led away by several policemen, adding to an already heightened atmosphere where well-wishers continue to gather to pray for Mandela.Mandela was taken to the hospital on June 8 to be treated for what the Government said was a recurring lung infection. South Africans have held prayers nationwide, and many have left flowers and messages of support outside the hospital as well as his home in Johannesburg.On Thursday, the office of South African President Jacob Zuma said Mandela’s health had improved overnight, and that his condition was critical but stable.A young boy rests by a large picture of former South African President Nelson Mandela placed by the Union Building in Pretoria yesterday. In a statement released by the Presidency Thursday, South African President Jacob Zuma said he cancelled his visit to Mozambique so he could visit Mandela who was much better than when I saw him Wednesday night. (PHOTO:AP)

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Mandela family fight over icon’s burial spot

SOUTH AFRICA: Mandela improved overnight

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Nelson Mandela’s health improved overnight and although his condition remains critical it is now stable, the South African government said yesterday. One of the former president’s daughters said he was still opening his eyes and reacting to the touch of his family even though his situation was precarious.

The report that the health of the 94-year-old anti-apartheid leader had taken a turn for the better came amid a growing sense in South Africa that Mandela was approaching the end of his life. Well-wishers have delivered flowers and messages of support to the Pretoria hospital where he is being treated, and prayer sessions were held around the country on Thursday.President Jacob Zuma’s office said in a statement that he received the encouraging update from the medical team that is treating Mandela. Zuma had cancelled an international trip yesterday, instead visiting Mandela for the second time in two days.“I cancelled my visit to Mozambique today (yesterday) so that I can see him and confer with the doctors,” Zuma said in the statement. “He is much better today than he was when I saw him last night.”In April, Zuma gave an overly upbeat assessment about Mandela’s condition. At that time, state television broadcast footage of a visit by Zuma and other political leaders to Mandela’s home. Zuma said at the time that Mandela was in good shape, but the footage showed him silent and unresponsive, even when Zuma tried to hold his hand.Mandela, who was imprisoned for 27 years during white racist rule and became president in all-race elections in 1994, was taken to a hospital on June 8 for what the government said was a recurring lung infection.Zuma urged people to pray for Mandela, and continue with their work and daily activities even while he is hospitalised.The president’s office said it was disturbed by what it called rumours about Mandela’s health and appealed for respect for the privacy and dignity of the former leader. Unconfirmed reports about Mandela have swirled on social media and other forums.Mandela’s condition is acknowledged to be grave. He is on life support systems, according to a few television networks that quote anonymous sources, and presidential spokesman Mac Maharaj has declined to confirm or deny those reports.Makaziwe Mandela, one of Mandela’s daughters, echoed the criticism, saying foreign media coverage of her father’s illness had become intrusive, particularly at the Pretoria hospital where many journalists have gathered.“There’s sort of a racist element with many of the foreign media, where they just cross boundaries,” she said in the SABC interview. “It’s like truly vultures waiting when a lion has devoured a buffalo, waiting there for the last carcasses. That’s the image that we have, as a family.”She said: “We don’t mind the interest. But I just think it has gone overboard.”In comments posted on the SABC website, Makaziwe Mandela said “anything is imminent” because her father, referred to affectionately by many South Africans as “Tata”, or “Father”, is in a very critical state.“I want to emphasise again that it’s only God who knows when the time to go is,” she said. “So we will wait with Tata. He’s still giving us hope by opening his eyes, he’s still reactive to touch, we will live with that hope until the end comes.”Beginning a trip to Africa, President Barack Obama said in Senegal yesterday that his thoughts and prayers were with South Africans and in particular the Mandela family. He said he was inspired, as a law school student in the early 1990s, to see Mandela step forward after decades of imprisonment to help deliver democracy in a spirit of reconciliation with his former captors.“It gave me a sense of what is possible in the world when righteous people, when people of goodwill, work together on behalf of a larger cause,” said Obama, who described Mandela as a personal hero. “And if and when he passes from this place, one thing I think we’ll all know is that his legacy is one that will linger on throughout the ages.”

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SOUTH AFRICA: Mandela improved overnight