Nelson Mandela Is 95 Today

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.