Soweto - It’s mostly quite at the old house of former President Nelson Mandela in Vilakazi Street, as tens of thousands of mourners are heading to the massive Memorial Service at FNB Stadium to pay their last respects to the late leader who changed the face of South Africa.
The four-roomed Mandela house, which is also a museum that reminds the nation about its past and the power of reconciliation and nation-building, has been alive with the sound of mourners, paying tribute to the 95-year-old statesman since his death on December 5, 2013.
A wall at the Mandela Family Restaurant in Vilakazi Street is painted white, with Madiba’s image and a message which reads: “No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or background, or his religion.
People must learn to hate and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite. -Nelson Mandela 1918-2013.”
South Africans will commemorate Mandela’s passing at the 95 000-seater FNB Stadium. Those who cannot be accommodated at the stadium can watch the ceremony on digital screens at Orlando, Dobsonville and Ellis Park Stadia, while the ceremony will be screen at public viewing venues around the country. - SAnews.gov.za
