People allover the world are celebrating the
95th birthday of South Africa’s anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela, whom
many warmly refer to as ‘Madiba’.
Even as the revered statesman remains critically ill in a
hospital, back home in his country, South Africans are preparing to
donate goods and volunteer their services for 67-minutes, all for a good
cause as part of the Mandela Day initiative, which honours the legacy
of the country’s first black president and marks his birthday.
Sixty-seven represents the number of years Mandela served his country through public service, politics and while incarcerated.
The initiative recognises the 67 years Mandela spent working for South
Africa. Many South Africans have said they were excited about the
opportunity to plough back to their communities.
On Monday, South
African President Jacob Zuma put out a statement reminding “all South
Africans to begin planning for Madiba’s birthday”, using the former
president’s clan name.
“We must all be able to do something good for humanity on this day, in tribute to our former president,” he said.
Mandela, regarded the founding father of South Africa’s multi-racial
democracy, was admitted to a Pretoria hospital on June 8 for a recurring
lung infection.
In New York, superstars Stevie Wonder, Aretha
Franklin, Wyclef Jean, Josh Groban and others will perform a special
concert in Mandela’s honor at Radio City Music Hall. Proceeds from the
concert will benefit 46664, Mandela’s global HIV/AIDS awareness and
prevention campaign. The number 46664 represents Mandela’s inmate number
during his imprisonment on Robben Island.
Events to honor Mandela
are scheduled in Chicago, Los Angeles, Detroit, Boston, and a number of
other cities throughout the United States.
Meanwhile, the High
Commission of the Republic of South Africa in Nigeria is organizing the
internationally recognized Mandela Day in Abuja. The annual event aims
to garner support of all people of the world to honour Dr Mandela by
dedicating 67 minutes of their time in voluntary charity work to promote
his legacy.
In a press statement made available by the High
Commission in Abuja, it said that such events and goodwill gestures
create opportunities for people to people interaction in the host
country and improve on the understandings on nations’ stature and what
it stands for.
The statement also said that the Mission would
host a series of events to celebrate Dr Mandela’s birthday, including
visits to local schools and/or orphanages, a public lecture at, followed
by a diplomatic cocktail reception at the Silverbird in Abuja today.
Amongst other things, the event would be used to reach out to the
communities in and around Abuja through donation of food parcels,
stationery, medicines, and school uniforms. Such initiatives will also
be utilized to educate the students and people of Nigeria on Mr
Mandela’s life and long standing legacies while also affording the
Mission and its partners the opportunity to indoctrinate the spirit of
ubuntu, the statement said.
Source: Leadership
