It’s the wrong time for the Mandelas to negatively hog the limelight.

We all know there are three certainties in life, birth, taxes and death. Despite that, knowing you‘re about to lose a loved one can be a stressfully poignant occasion, more so when that person is a historic messiah loved and cherished by the entire world.

Another certainty in life, although a minor one, is family feuds. Most families have them, but not all families openly air and indulge in them, particularly when they are the family of the most peaceful man alive.

Nelson Mandela, Madiba, is a peaceful man who fought aggression and injustice with peace, understanding and love. Because of whom Mandela is what he has achieved and the manner by which he realized it, his family has a duty to uphold and respect his legacy. And what transpired in the past few days is the wrong way to go about it.

I was mildly shocked this weekend when I read what looked like the beginning on an Oprah Winfrey Show. By the time the evening news aired last night the whole thing has swiftly moved from an exposé with the queen of chat show to a bust-up in the Jerry Springer show. Not good, nor proper.

Please Mandelas! Not while the world is watching and the great man is on his final days.

All families argue. From personal experience, the arguing becomes more intense when loved ones are unwell or dying. Losing or knowing you’re about to lose someone you love is never easy. But openly fighting when the whole world is watching is disgraceful no matter the reasons.

At this sensitive time the focus should be on nothing but the great man in his final hours.