He rarely involved himself in the details of governance. And he appeared to value loyalty more than competence as he allowed veterans of the antiapartheid struggle to flounder in key posts. Where AIDS is concerned, that weakness may cost lives. Since Mandela took the oath of office, the HIV infection rate among pregnant women seeking care at public clinics has rocketed from 7 percent to more than 23 percent. Ignorance remains rife.
Crime is also unabated.
Some 25 vehicles are hijacked each day in the Johannesburg-Pretoria region alone. More than 1,000 police officers have been murdered since 1994. Yet they have not been called to task. And as part of his 80th-birthday celebration last year, Mandela set free 9,000 convicts who were nearing their release dates. Criminality is fueled by the masses of unemployed.