According to the report, 300m rand ($22m; £16m) was redirected from a development fund to help with costs.

It had been earmarked for things like “sanitation, the replacement of mud schools and the refurbishment of hospitals,” the report stated.

Instead, the authorities allegedly spent it on items like $24 T-shirts.

Allegations of misuse first emerged in 2014, months after Mr Mandela’s funeral in Qunu, Eastern Cape, in December 2013, which was attended by heads of state from around the world.

Now, nearly four years after Mr Mandela’s death at the age of 95, the country’s public protector, Busi Mkhwebane, has asked President Jacob Zuma to pursue the allegations further using the special investigations unit.

The 300-page report describes how officials in the Eastern Cape pocketed funds, ignored basic rules, and inflated costs.

Ms Mkhwebane described the failure to follow regulations on the spending of public money as “very scary” and “appalling”, according to South Africa’s Mail&Guardian newspaper.

“It is very concerning that we can use a funeral to do such things,” she told a press conference. “How do you charge or escalate prices or even send an invoice for something you have not delivered?”

Ms Mkhwebane said disorganisation had a role to play in the misuse, but also hit out at how South Africa’s ruling ANC party had apparently issued instructions to officials on how the money should be spent.

“There are invoices we are showing with letterheads from the ANC. And monies were paid but again services were not rendered,” she was quoted as saying by South Africa’s EyeWitness News.

She added: “We are hopeful whoever has committed these acts will be taken to task.”

This is not the first scandal to surround official events commemorating the apartheid struggle hero’s life.

The man tasked with providing a sign language interpretation at the memorial service was accused of making up gestures, while a fight for control over Mandela’s legacy within his own family mired the last months of his life.

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Source: BBC

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The history of the African liberation struggle would be incomplete without the personal history and motivations of Nelson Rolihlala Mandela. As Daniel Lieberfeld wrote, the quality of life that Mandela lived enabled him to embody the ideal of inter-group reconciliation, not only in his home country of South Africa, but also on the African continent and the world over, to an extent that is perhaps without historical equivalent. It was therefore not surprising when on July 18, 2009, the United Nation General Assembly instituted the Nelson Mandela International Day to commemorate the lifetime service that Nelson Mandela gave to South Africa, Africa and the world.

Nelson Mandela lived in a period of ruthless oppression in South Africa. The challenges of the times and how he rose to become the model of the anti-apartheid movement places Mandela’s legacy in a progressive perspective with consequences on collective actions against racism, oppression and exploitation in Africa and across the world. Mandela’s influence on the African liberation struggle is that of inspiration and the belief in the human spirit to forge ahead in the face of fierce oppression and the willingness to reconcile with former adversaries. Liberation fighters in Africa and across the world draw encouragement from Nelson Mandela’s rare sense of personal sacrifice in the cause of pursuing the collective good and the wellbeing of all. The very life of Nelson Mandela challenged the unfettered ideals of selfishness, greed, revenge and unhealthy competition that characterized many African countries in the post-independence era.

Beyond representing a symbol of peaceful collective action for change, Nelson Mandela was actively involved in resolving a number of conflicts on the African continent. After voluntarily stepping down as President of South Africa in April 1999, Mandela became the chief mediator of the civil war in Burundi after the death of former Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere.  Mandela pushed hard for the inclusion of rebel groups and advocated ethnic power-sharing arrangements such as a rotating presidency and equal Hutu-Tutsi representation in an integrated army. Nelson Mandela unblocked the talks by instituting decision making by “sufficient consensus” of the largest and most representative parties; imposed a deadline for agreement; involved African governments and the United States and European countries as sponsors and donors; and pushed Thabo Mbeki, his successor as president, to commit South African troops as peacekeepers. The resulting Arusha Accords of 2000 were largely the product of Mandela’s procedural and substantive innovations, his capacity to speak truth to politicians and exert moral pressure on recalcitrant parties.

The legacy of Nelson Mandela indeed transcends the borders of the African continent. His is a legacy for leadership and humanity as a whole. As a strong advocate for liberation, Nelson Mandela did not only concern himself with freedom from the shackles of physical oppression but was also a strong activist for mental liberation through the power of education. Nelson Mandela lived a life filled with the belief that education and life-long learning are the most powerful weapons for changing the world. In his own words, “a good head and heart are always a formidable combination,” in every human struggle.

As the world commemorates Mandela Day, we at Stanbic Bank Ghana take inspiration from Nelson Mandela’s leadership in liberation from social and economic oppression and his love of education as a weapon of change. We celebrate the life and achievement of this great global icon of peace and respect for humanity. Indeed, our eight (8) values – serving our customers, growing our people, delivering to our shareholders, being proactive, working in teams, constantly raising the bar, respecting each other, upholding the highest level of integrity – find expression in the words of this towering figure when he said,

“What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life lead”.

To this end, Stanbic has been using the celebration of Mandela Day as platform for supporting educational initiatives in Ghana. These include the donation of computers and learning materials, refurbishment of some learning centres and the adoption of some special schools.

To commemorate the day this year, staff of the Bank will spend time mentoring students of the La Yahoushua Primary school in Accra, and donate items to the pupils.

Nelson Mandela may not have lived in the era of Kwame Nkrumah, Patrice Lumumba, Sekou Toure and others when the struggle for African liberation from colonialism was at its peak. However, rising to the challenge of leadership, together with his keen support for education have put Mandela on a pedestal among the pantheon of African and global heroes.

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Source: Stanbic Bank

The post Nelson Mandela: The Man, The Legacy! appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The Mvezo-born Rolihlahla!
Yes, you were named a trouble maker
But you lived a freedom fighter, a peacemaker
A model leader.

Christened a Nelson.
Kept in prison.
Your resolve never imprisoned.
You showed the world that might within is greater than might without.

O the streets of Rivonia shall miss the rattling steps of a hero.
Qunu-Mthatha weep not! To your soil your son cometh for his rest.
He has made thee proud.
He has made thee Count.

We hope to impact as he.

HAIL MADIBA ROLIHLAHLA MANDELA!

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By: Senyo Hosi

The post The Black Madiba: A tribute to Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.