Guardian

S’African govt says Madiba remains in serious but stable condition

THE Chairperson, African Union (AU) Commission, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and Archbishop Desmond Tutu have joined others in sending get well messages and prayers to ailing South Africa’s first black president and global peace icon, Nelson Mandela, as he spent a third day in hospital Monday receiving intensive care.

Dlamini-Zuma, in a statement, said: “I have been following very closely, with prayerful attention the evolution of Nelson Mandela’s health. I know that he is getting the best possible medical attention and treatment anyone of his status could receive. It gives me great comfort to hear that he is also responding positively to treatment.

“I am sending him our fervent prayers and numerous get-well-soon messages from the entire staff of the commission, organs and people of the union. We give him courage and urge him carry on.

“We continue to pray and look forward to Madiba’s speedy recovery!”

Another statement from Desmond and Leah Tutu’s foundation said: “As the beloved father of our nation ... Nelson Mandela once again endures the ravages of time in hospital, our prayers are for his comfort and his dignity.”

“We offer our thanks to God for the extraordinary gift of Mandela, and wish his family strength,” Tutu said.

Tutu, therefore, joined legions of local and international personalities wishing the iconic leader a speedy recovery.

Mandela, now 94, was rushed to a Pretoria hospital in the early hours of Saturday for treatment with a lung infection. His condition has been described as serious but stable.

However, the South African government said Monday that Mandela remains in a serious but stable condition as he receives intensive care for a recurrent lung infection.

“Former president Nelson Mandela remains in hospital, and his condition is unchanged,” the presidency said in a statement.

The government had described his condition as “serious but stable” on Saturday.

“He is receiving intensive care treatment,” presidential spokesman Mac Maharaj, who served jail time with Mandela, told Agence France Presse (AFP).

It is the fourth hospital stay in seven months for the man beloved as a global symbol of peace and forgiveness and the father of the “Rainbow Nation”.

And with his latest health scare, South Africans are beginning to come to terms with the mortality of their anti-apartheid hero and first black president.

“He has done his part. We just pray that he recovers,” said Kennedy Moraga outside a private specialist heart clinic in Pretoria, where he is believed to be receiving treatment.

Two of Mandela’s daughters and some grandchildren were spotted on Sunday entering the facility, although the government has not confirmed it is where he is being treated.

“I’ve seen my father and he’s well. He’s a fighter,” Mandela’s daughter, Zindzi, told Britain’s Guardian newspaper on Sunday.

Access to Mandela has been restricted to close family members in a bid to reduce the risk of further infections.

In late April, President Jacob Zuma and top party officials were photographed with an unsmiling Mandela looking exceedingly frail at his Johannesburg home.

The visit prompted allegations that the under-fire ruling party was exploiting Mandela for political gain.

The ANC – facing 2014 elections – has lost much of its Mandela shine amid widespread corruption, poverty and poor public services.

The party and the government yesterday denied local media reports that they had been barred from visiting Mandela in hospital by the former leader’s entourage.

“There are general restrictions that permit only relevant people to have access,” said ANC spokesman Jackson Mthembu.