MANDELA DIES AT 95! ADIEU MADIBA

Silence Please !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He passed away in the company of his family at around 8:50pm on December 5, South African President Jacob Zuma announced in a statement to the nation's people. 

"He is now rested, he is now at peace," Mr Zuma said, as huge crowd grew outside the former leader's home. "Our nation has lost its greatest son, our people have lost a father.

"Although we knew that this day would come, nothing can diminish the profound and enduring loss." 

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the Mandela family."

The man credited with dismantling South Africa's system of apartheid which institutionalized racism, Mandela was an international symbol of reconciliation and human rights.

Brief History of his life

A trained lawyer who rose to prominence as a leader of the African National Congress's

fight against the Afrikaaner regime, Mandela was imprisoned in 1962 for sabotage and conspiracy to overthrow the government.

He served 27 years, mostly in the isolated Robben Island prison for political inmates. An international campaign lobbied for his release, which was granted in 1990.

At the end of his trial, Mandela gave a now iconic speech in which he said: "I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination.

"I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities.

"It is an ideal, which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."

He served as South Africa's president from 1994-99.

Mandela last appeared in public during the 2010 World Cup hosted by South Africa. His absences from the limelight and frequent hospitalizations left the nation on edge, prompting Zuma to reassure citizens every time he fell sick.

"Mandela is woven into the fabric of the country and the world," said Ayo Johnson.

Mandela was awarded the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize, the US Presidential Medal of Freedom and is held in deep respect within South Africa as the "Father of the Nation"

He was admitted to a hospital in Pretoria on June 8 to be treated for a recurrence of a lung infection. A nation has been on edge ever since as the former president fought to stay alive. 

Adieu Madiba.