Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf says she will try to make a case for the emerging renaissance when she delivers the annual Nelson Mandela Lecture at Kliptown in Soweto this afternoon.

	• President Johnson-Sirleaf and Nelson Mandela on stage at the Annual Lecture

The 69-year-old became the first elected female president in both Liberia and Africa in January 2006. Speaking during a breakfast yesterday, Johnson-Sirleaf described Mandela as Africa's greatest hero.

The Nelson Mandela Foundation hosted the breakfast as part of his 90th birthday celebrations.

Meanwhile, Unisa’s Tinyiko Maluleke says Mandela's leadership as ANC president created both positive and negative spin-offs for the ruling party. He says the Mandela-Thabo Mbeki transition was huge, in that it's taken the ANC a long time to deal with the post-Mandela era.

“Mandela was a larger than life person. He both helped the ANC, but also created problems for the ANC after his departure because he was simply so large and so special and charismatic…”

North-West ANC stalwart, Ruth Mompati, says the significance of the 1997 ANC conference was two-fold in that Mandela led by example for upcoming leaders because many did not believe that he would quit active politics so easily.

Mompati says Mandela also put his faith in the younger Mbeki to take the ANC to greater heights. The former President will celebrate his birthday on the 18th of July.

Kliptown residents hand over Mandela memo

Less than a hundred Kliptown residents braved the chilly weather conditions and took to the streets to voice their anger at the lack of sanitation, housing and unemployment.

They were carrying placards reading "City of Joburg, a world class city of shacks, bucket-systems and hardship". Residents say since 1994, the ANC government led by Nelson Mandela, has not fulfilled its promises.

Residents say as Mandela celebrates his 90th birthday, he should know that the people of Kliptown feel betrayed by the ANC government. The CEO of the Nelson Mandela Foundation, Ahmed Dangor, received a memorandum on behalf of Mandela, and promised to give it to government.

Lecture

Meanwhile, dignitaries including a host of ministers, government officials and the diplomatic corps, are making their way to Kliptown, Soweto, for the annual Nelson Mandela lecture.

Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf will be the keynote speaker. Previous speakers included President Thabo Mbeki and former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan.

The 69-year-old Sirleaf became the first elected female president in both Liberia and Africa in January 2006. Her address is expected to focus on Africa's Renaissance.

SABC NEWS