Mbeki 'was homeless Londoner'

Mr Mbeki lived in England between 1962 and 1970

South African Presidency minister Essop Pahad has told the BBC of his 40-year friendship with President Thabo Mbeki - which included helping Mr Mbeki out when he was homeless on the streets of London.

Mr Mbeki, a prominent African National Congress (ANC) activist in his youth, moved to England in 1962 to study economics at Sussex University, and graduated in 1966. Mr Pahad was also at Sussex at the time.

It was after this, Mr Pahad revealed, that his friend found himself among the many homeless of London.

"For a time he stayed in our flat in West Kensington when he was homeless," Mr Pahad told BBC World Service's The Interview programme.

"Nobody believes a president can be homeless.

"He was. He used to carry a suitcase around with him with his world's belongings."

Making contact

In total, Mr Mbeki spent eight years in England - for much of that time accompanied by his comrade-in-exile Mr Pahad - before heading to the Soviet Union in 1970 for military training.

Mr Mbeki also married in England, at Farnham Castle - where Mr Pahad was his best man.

Mr Mbeki returned to South Africa in 1989 to head the Department of International Affairs of the ANC - the organisation that Mr Pahad had first guided the young Thabo around.

"When he first came to Johannesburg I was already many years in the [ANC] movement," Mr Pahad said.

"He was asked by the ANC leaders to come and make contact with me."

Mr Pahad says Mr Mbeki's warmth differs from his public image

Now 64 - with Mbeki 61 - Mr Pahad is officially Presidency Minister, an office created by Mr Mbeki after his election as South Africa's President in 1999.

Mr Pahad told The Interview of the new dynamic that had come into their relationship following Mr Mbeki's victory.

"We've had a long-standing relationship - but I must say that it doesn't interfere with our work," Mr Pahad said.

"When I became deputy minister to him, I said, 'as of now, I stop calling you Thabo'."

Mr Pahad now refers to his friend as Mr President or Comrade President, he said.

"He asked me why and I said, 'It is very important that you should have a distance, because if you want to fire me, then you should fire me without compunctions.

"'If you want to disagree with me, you should be able to do so'."

Statesman

Mr Pahad also said that Mr Mbeki was a great deal different to the cold and aloof personality often perceived by the public.

"He is an extremely warm person. He has a very good sense of humour," Mr Pahad argued.

"I think one of his strongest characteristics is that he is a fantastic listener.

"He has this ability - which very few other people have - to put himself in that other person's shoes."

And he added he believed a number of qualities he saw in Mr Mbeki as a friend had transferred into his time in office.

"He's an ideas person - he thinks very deeply," he stated.

"He's not satisfied by a glib answer from anybody else. I would have thought that's a plus for a head of state."