Nelson Mandela Still In Serious Condition

Former South African President and respected leader Nelson Mandela remains in critical condition in the hospital.

President Jacob Zuma announced that doctors were doing everything they could to make Mandela comfortable, while a senior official warned South Africans not to hold any "false hopes" for the 94-year-old, reports BBC.

Mandela was taken to the hospital in Pretoria earlier this month for the third time this year due to a lung infection.

On Sunday, the presidency announced that Mr. Mandela was in critical condition, after Mr. Zuma visited him in hospital. On Monday, he said he had found Mr. Mandela asleep, but had spoken to his wife and medical teams.

"All of us in the country should accept the fact that Madiba [Nelson Mandela's clan name] is now old. As he ages, his health will... trouble him and I think what we need to do as a country is to pray for him."

Mac Maharaj, Mr. Zuma's spokesman, told the BBC's Newshour that this was a stressful time for the Mandela family.

"I think there is need to be sombre about the news. There is a need not to hold out false hopes but at the same time let's keep him in our thoughts and let's will him more strength," he said.

Mandela became South Africa's first black president in 1994 after leading the struggle against white minority rule. However, he stepped down five years later.

Earlier this month, Mr. Mandela's grandson and family heir, Mandla, said the family had "been deeply touched" by the concern shown for Mr. Mandela's health.

Mr. Mandela's wife Graca Machel has been at his bedside regularly since calling off a trip to London last week. His daughter Zenani, who is the ambassador to Argentina, has also returned to South Africa to visit him.

In December, Mandela spent 18 days undergoing treatment for a lung infection and gallstones.

Before being admitted to hospital, Mr. Mandela had been ill for some days at his Johannesburg home, with a recurrence of his long-standing lung problems, the president's office said on Tuesday.

Mr. Mandela was imprisoned for 27 years for his role in the fight against apartheid and is believed to have suffered damage to his lungs while working in a prison quarry. He contracted tuberculosis in the 1980s while being held in jail on the windswept Robben Island.

Addressing the national assembly, President Zuma called on his country to remember Nelson Mandela not only for his years as the nation's first black president but also for his time as a revolutionary and a prisoner. "His rich legacy and history must not be distorted," he said, according to Telegraph.