Mr. Mandela retired from public life in 2004 and was last seen publicly in 2010, when he briefly appeared at the World Cup soccer tournament, which South Africa hosted. But he receives frequent visits from old friends. When Mr. Mandela was discharged from the hospital in December, Mac Maharaj, a spokesman for Mr. Zuma, said Mr. Mandela would be staying at home in a suburb of Johannesburg and receiving high-level care there.
His recurrent bouts of illness added to a sense of foreboding after a year in which South Africa has faced perhaps the most serious unease and unrest since the end of apartheid provoked by a leadership struggle within the A.N.C. and a wave of wildcat strikes by angry mine workers.
Additionally, President Zuma has come under public scrutiny in recent months, particularly in relation to how $27 million of government money was spent on upgrades to a private homestead and compound in rural Zululand. The looming questions highlight a broader perception that Mr. Mandela’s near saintly legacy from the years of struggle has been eroded by a more recent scramble for self-enrichment among a newer elite.
Alan Cowell contributed reporting from London.
Article Appeared @http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/29/world/africa/nelson-mandela-hospital-lung-infection.html?hp