Makaziwe Mandela describes Nelson Mandela’s final hours

Makaziwe Mandela has described the final hours of her father Nelson Mandela, who died aged 95 on December 5.

In an interview with BBC, Makaziwe Mandela revealed the former president’s wife Graca, the children and grandchildren were there “even at the last moment”.

Makaziwe Mandela said: “Until the last moment he had us, you know… The children were there, the grandchildren were there, Graca was there, so we are always around him and even at the last moment, we were sitting with him on Thursday the whole day.

“I think from last week, Friday until Thursday, it was a wonderful time, if you can say the process of death is wonderful. But Tata [Nelson Mandela] had a wonderful time, because we were there.

“When the doctors told us I think Thursday morning… that there was nothing that they could do, and said to me <<Maki call everybody that is here that wants to see him and say bye bye>>, it was a most wonderful day for us because the grandchildren were there, we were there.”

Makaziwe Mandela paid tribute to the doctors for the 24-hour care.

Nelson Mandela’s daughter said: “It was like there were soldiers guarding this period of the king – yes my father comes from royalty – without them knowing they were actually practicing our rituals and culture, they were there in silence and when we as family members come in they would excuse themselves and just a few of them would be there to give us the time to be around my dad’s bed.”

Makaziwe Mandela said that, for the past few months, she would tell her father that she loved him and that would see him again tomorrow.

“And maybe he would open his eyes for just a second and close those eyes,” she said.