South Africa declares itself ready for World Cup

PRETORIA: South Africa has declared itself ready to stage the first World Cup on African soil, with President Jacob Zuma saying the event had shown the Rainbow Nation finally coming together as one.

Five days before South Africa take on Mexico in the tournament opener, Fifa President Sepp Blatter said Africa as a whole could take a bow for its organisation efforts and the world’s poorest continent could no longer be sidelined.

“We are truly pleased and humbled to host the world in our country for this historical and extraordinary event,” said Zuma. “South Africa is more than ready. For us the World Cup has already begun.”

The event is being held in South Africa some 16 years after the demise of the white supremacist apartheid regime which ended with the election of Nelson Mandela as the country’s first black president.

“The enthusiasm, joy and excitement that has engulfed the entire nation in the last few weeks has not been seen since president Nelson Mandela was released from prison in 1990. The explosion of national pride has been a priceless benefit. It’s clear that millions of our people look upon this tournament with hope, pride and sense of belonging. The South African flag has become the most popular item on the shopping list of South Africans and this augurs well for our nation-building.”

National expectations have been swelled by a sharp upturn in performances by the South African team, known as Bafana Bafana, who are now unbeaten in 12 matches after beating Denmark 1-0 on Saturday.

Zuma also paid tribute to Mandela whose lobbying for the tournament was seen as crucial in Fifa’s decision to pick South Africa.

“At this point it is proper for me to acknowledge and thank our founding president and icon, Nelson Mandela, for his visionary leadership and statesmanship,” said Zuma. “He also worked hard personally to bring us to this glorious moment.”

Zuma said he hoped Mandela would be present at the kick-off of the tournament in Johannesburg on Friday but said there were no guarantees.

Mandela’s family has said that the 91-year-old is too frail to attend.

“He’d love to be there. Whether he will be there on the day depends entirely on him. If he did not appear, we would understand. If he’s there, it’ll be a bonus for this tournament. We wish he would be there.

Published in the Express Tribune, June 7^th, 2010.