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When I first met Mandela, we did not discuss anything of substance; we just felt each other out. He spent a long time expressing his admiration for the Boer generals and how ingenious they were during the Anglo-Boer war.

President Mandela was not a hands-on president at any time.

Mandela once phoned me out of the blue while he was still president, and at first he played with me a bit.

It was fortunate in looking back for South Africa and its entire people that Mandela and I found it possible to work together even though big strains developed between us from time to time.

Unsurprisingly, Nelson Mandela had and still has many detractors.

Obviously because of my personal connection to Mandela and having had his story as part of my childhood, I knew how awesome he was.

Nelson Mandela just died, so that says so much because it's a tremendously powerful and great man who was very sensitive. Loved all people, forgave his enemies, and showed the world how to stand up and do it the right way.

The popularity of leaders like Mandela was an invitation to counter-attack by the government. Mandela was banned from speaking, from attending gatherings, from leaving Johannesburg, from belonging to any organization.

Twenty-seven years incarcerated, his jailer became his best friend. So if you need an example on how we should act and how we should be, then Nelson Mandela is the man to follow.