Pretoria - The SA Post Office handed out free bottles of water bearing a picture of former president Nelson Mandela to thousands of people queuing at the Fountains Valley park-and-ride in Pretoria on Thursday.
The label carried the message “Madiba we salute you” and a picture of a younger Mandela sitting on a couch.
People waiting to be taken to the Union Buildings in Pretoria to see Mandela lying in state clapped and rejoiced when the bottles were handed out. Some said they could not afford to buy from vendors as they were too expensive.
Soft drinks were selling for between R15 and R20 a can. Cheap juice ice creams that normally sell for about R3 in the shops were being sold for R10 upwards.
Mandela died at his Houghton, Johannesburg, home last Thursday at the age of 95.
Sapa