Jacques Sellschop and Madiba: Tales of tennis, phone calls and a secret oxtail dinner

JACQUES Sellschop, now approaching 80 years old and from an Afrikaans family in Potchefstroom, has lived a life that has been beyond anything he could possibly have imagined as a young man.

He retired to Marina Beach on the South Coast of KwaZulu-Natal some years ago. It’s here that he spends much of his free time taking photographs, mainly of wildlife.

“I’m not actually very good at anything in particular. I’m neither rich nor important. But I have always found it easy to listen. I never imagined I would meet the people I did,” he said.

One of these was Nelson Mandela.

ALSO READ: 67 Facts about Nelson Mandela

Before that, a quick background: Jacques qualified as an English teacher, with a deep love for literature.

He was also a very good tennis player and later became involved with Tennis South Africa.

Over time, and in some extraordinary circumstances, he taught and worked in South Africa, the United Kingdom, Russia and the United States of America.

After his travels abroad, Jacques came back to South Africa to run Greenside High School in Johannesburg.

In the late 1960s he joined William Smith to start and run the Star Schools project.

William handled the maths and science and Jacques the English.

It was such a success story that Jacques and William ended up flying around the country in response to demands to set it up in other major centres.

DON’T YOU THINK IT’S TIME?

In time Jacques would go on to work for electronics industry business magnate Bill Venter of the Altron Group.

His job was corporate affairs, which required him to develop relationships with those in government.

Annual hunting trips were part of the lobbying process, although Jacques says he had never shot an animal before and has not shot one since.

On one such trip he gently suggested to former President PW Botha that ‘it might now be time to let Nelson Mandela out of jail’.

“PW looked at me, waved his finger in typical fashion and (loosely translated) said, ‘luister ou maat, don’t get the idea that a night goes by that I don’t think about that old man in prison when I put my head down on my pillow’.”

Jacques was aware of plans to release Mandela in July of 1988… to simply open the doors and let him free.

But the securocrats scuppered that plan.

By 1989 Madiba could stipulate his own conditions for his release. He had become a ‘celebrity millstone’ for the government, with so much international pressure being applied for his release.

That forced the dramatic change that saw him released from the Victor Verster prison in February of 1990.

PURE ROBBEN ISLAND KHAKI

By November 1990, the South African economy was in dire straits because of crippling sanctions, especially by the USA.

Having the sole agencies for NCR, Motorola and Xerox, which were crucial to the South African economy, Bill Venter asked Pik Botha to arrange a meeting with Mandela.

Bill took Jacques with him to plead for the lifting of sanctions, lest the ANC inherit a wasteland.

They were granted a 15-minute time slot at noon on a Saturday, but had to fly to a mountain top resort near Nelspruit where Mandela had been sent to rest.

“We planned in great detail to present the salvation of the country in 15 minutes, and elected to wear tie and jacket, lest suits appear too capitalist.”

Ironically, the door to Mandala’s mountain-top chalet was opened by a maid dressed in Victorian-style uniform with white cap and apron.

Mandela appeared, wearing a simple shirt and trousers in very rough khaki.

He took over immediately. “It’s hot today. Let me help you take off those jackets.”

Rubbing the sleeve of Bill’s elegant garment, he said with a twinkle in his eye: “Hm….pure Gucci, is it? Here, would you like to feel pure Robben Island?”, he asked, holding out his arm.

Sensing that his visitors were unsure about whether he was joking or not, he laughed loudly: “You know, when they wanted to kick me out of prison I said I would go only if I could take six sets of my prison uniform with me. After twenty-seven years, I feel comfortable in nothing else!”

That broke the ice. They made their sanctions plea but were invited to stay for lunch, and then afternoon tea, finally leaving at 5pm.

Mandela just wanted to talk and talk, with an insatiable thirst for information about the socio-economic situation and political perceptions.

In true democratic fashion, Mandela promised to consult with the ANC’s National Executive Council.

Bill was going overseas the next day, so Mandela said: “I’ll let you know by Tuesday, just leave me your home number, Jacques.”

RESTAURANT PHONE CALL

Fast forward a few days and Jacques is having dinner with his wife Rhona at a restaurant in Bryanston.

The owner comes across and says: “Jacques, don’t think I’m being funny but there’s a man on the phone for you who says his name is Nelson Mandela”.

It was indeed the great man.

With great warmth he said, “I phoned your home first and your son gave me this restaurant number.”

Apologetically he added: “I’m afraid we’re not ready to lift the sanctions yet. We need more evidence that your government is prepared to stop the violence against our people.”

Confusions about a ‘3rd force’ were not helping the situation.

FIRST CORDLESS PHONE

Some months later, Jacques received a call from Madiba, enquiring about ‘one of those phones that are not tied to the wall’.

His reason: “The couches in this house they gave me are so deep that by the time I get out of one to answer the phone, it has stopped ringing.”

Altron had the agency for a cordless phone and Bill agreed that Jacques should give him one.

After thanking Jacques profusely, he added with that mischievous twinkle in his eye, “How do I know you haven’t bugged this phone, Jacques?”

He never missed an opportunity for a joke.

SECRET SUPPER OF OXTAIL

On a subsequent occasion, he asked Jacques: “Do you trust FW de Klerk?”

“Implicitly,” came the reply.

“I want to meet with him. Privately. Man to man.”

While the two had already met, it had always been in a forum of officials or the media.

“Can you organise that Jacques?”

Jacques phoned FW, who agreed. “Ek sal graag met die ou man gesels,” he said.

Jacques invited them to his home in Bryanston for dinner.

It was to be a top secret and private affair set for 8pm on a Wednesday evening in November.

Only the President and Mandela’s security detail would be in attendance.

On the day Mandela phoned to say he had a problem with the time. He had accepted an interview with SABC-TV to be aired after the evening news, thinking it would be pre-recorded, but discovered it was to be live at 8:30pm.

“Just come as soon as you can,” said Jacques after consulting with FW.

The President wasn’t perturbed. “Let’s drink a whiskey and watch the interview on TV,” he said jovially.

At 8.55pm a lone figure suddenly appeared at the glass sliding doors of the lounge. It was Mandela.

Twelve members of two security details were spread about the garden.

Warmly he greeted FW saying: “Good evening Mr President”.

Graciously FW replied: “ And a good evening to you, Mr President”.

That gesture was profound.

After all, Mandela was the President of the ANC and the government in waiting.

At the request of the two statesmen, Jacques’ wife Rhona had prepared oxtail and Jacques had undertaken to serve it and leave the guests in privacy.

Realising this, FW insisted: “Nee jong, jy moet by wees as skeidsregter vir dié gesprek”. In perfect Afrikaans, Mandela echoed the sentiment: “Ja, Jacques. Jy moet kom fluitjie blaas.”

The two spent the next four hours, chewing on the oxtail bones and discussing matters of profound significance.

Among these was the Boipatong massacres and the perceptions of a Third Force.

“It’s not us,” said De Klerk. It turned out he was right.

After that dinner the famous Goldstone commission of inquiry was set up, headed by that internationally celebrated Jewish judge, Richard Goldstone.

BONJOUR, MONSIEUR PRESIDENT

Over the years, Jacques had many meetings with Madiba through his work with Altron and later as Corporate Affairs Executive with cellular network giant MTN where, among other things, he oversaw the substantial donations budget.

On one occasion, a week after then French president Jacques Chirac’s state visit to South Africa, Jacques (Sellschop, not Chirac) accompanied President Mandela to hand over a substantial donation from MTN to an institution for handicapped children outside Pretoria.

As is the case in South Africa, such visits by president Mandela were, to put it mildly, a big deal.

“Seemingly, the entire community had turned out to attend the event . The hall was packed with some two thousand people. This meant, in true African style, a marathon of greetings and prayers and speeches in tribute.”

The President was already tired from his exhausting schedule and by the time a local preacher was delivering the third, endless address, Mandela had already dozed off in his chair on the stage.

Suddenly the speeches were over and the program director announced: “And now I give you our State President Mandela who will address you.”

Shaken from his little doze by a gentle nudge from Jacques, Mr Mandela made is way to the podium. Clearly the state visit of the previous week was still fresh in his mind.

As the rapturous applause died down, he said: “I will not take too much of your time. I have a generous gift for your community. I will now ask my good friend Jacques Chirac to hand it over to you.”

The audience was stunned and not a little curious at the apparent masquerade.

Jacques chuckled quietly to himself and in the car on the way back to Pretoria was amused that Mandela had not the slightest recall of the slip. But he passed it off with aplomb: “Did I say that? Well, I’m sure Chirac would not have minded one bit being compared with your social conscience.”

‘NO ONE IS BORN HATING’

At other times, during lunches and private conversations, the nature of racism was a topic of discussion.

Madiba was especially interested to explore this and more so when he discovered that Jacques had spent his formative years in a conservative town like Potchefstroom.

It was on one of those occasions that Jacques listened to him expand on his philosophy of ‘no one is born hating’.

MYSTERY GUESTS, BECKER DOUBLE-FAULTS

Jacques also became the go-to man for many international celebrities wanting to meet Madiba – singer Dionne Warwick, tennis player John McEnroe and actor Peter Ustinov, among others.

“Mr Mandela had an incredible, disarming effect on celebrities. They were in such awe of him that they would often lose their power of speech when meeting him. But he had the charming ability of always making them feel more important than himself.”

The MTN-sponsored Mandela Cup Tennis Invitational was held in Cape Town in the early 90’s with the prize-giving dinner planned for 100 celebrity guests in a marque on the Vergelegen wine estate.

Eight past Wimbledon champions like Boris Becker, Pat Cash and Michael Stich were invited to play.

The trophy was a beautiful crystal glass bowl commissioned from the House of Waterford in Ireland.

The president was due to attend the gala dinner and present the trophy.

Three days before the occasion he phoned Jacques to say there was “a little problem”.

He had double booked. “My heart sank,” said Jacques, but it lifted when he asked: “Would you mind if I bring my two guests along with me?”

The nightmare of seating protocols flashed briefly through the mind, but Jacques was relieved: “Yes, of course Madiba, that’s fine.” he responded.

“However,” said Madiba after a pause, I hope you don’t mind, but they do come with a entourage.”

Thoughts of a few extra chairs at the back of the marquee were not too troublesome.

“How many will they be?”

Smoothly the answer came: “Thirty-eight. It’s the security, you see.”

“Madiba, would you mind if I asked who they are?”

Equally smoothly: “Oh…er…Bill and Hillary Clinton.”

Becker won the event and during the dinner, as the president handed over the magnificent glass trophy, the occasion in the presence of the great man proved just too much for the tennis star.

Fumbling between receiving the prize and shaking hands, Boris dropped the trophy. It shattered into a million pieces on the floor between the two.?

“Becker’s face drained of colour and I thought he was going to faint,” said Jacques. But Madiba did not miss a beat. Holding tightly on to Becker’s shivering hand, he said: “Don’t worry Boris. I’m sure they’ll buy you another one. Meanwhile join me in stamping on this glass. If it was a Jewish wedding it would bring good luck and I’m sure we can both do with some of that.”

YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS?

On another occasion, tennis legend John McEnroe asked to meet Mandela.

When the moment arrived at the house in Houghton, he gave him a gift of the Dunlop Maxply racquet he had used when he beat Jimmy Connors at Wimbledon.

Looking at his PA, Madiba said: “Zelda, remind me not to wash my hand for at least a week. I have just shaken the hand of the great John McEnroe.”

McEnroe was speechless and tears welled up in his eyes.

He seldom displayed such emotion.

British actor Sir Peter Ustinov was also a fan.

Jacques had met him at Wimbledon, through his tennis connections, and the actor had inquired about the possibility of meeting Mandela.

Madiba was thrilled by the prospect but at the time had accepted an invitation to sail on the QE2 from Durban to Cape Town.

Ever gracious and thoughtful , he said: “Ask Peter and his wife whether they would like to join Graca and me on the cruise.”

And so the invitation was issued, and accepted.

AMOROUS BULL STEALS THE SHOW

For Mr Mandela’s 80th birthday, MTN elected to give him a present of nine Bonsmara cows and a stud bull.

The presentation was scheduled for his house in Qunu, with a large media presence.

Generously, Madiba attended the occasion wearing an MTN corporate cap with the 083 key number emblazoned in gold on it.

“During the handover speech, the bull behind Madiba became somewhat enamoured with one of the cows and began to mount her with tremendous vigour,” recalls Jacques.

The large contingent of journalists facing the cows, including many from overseas, began tittering, but were unable to conceal their mirth from Madiba for long.

He noticed their giggling, stopped mid-speech, and asked if he had done something wrong.

When he turned around and saw what the bull was doing, he laughed.

“It’s a good thing this is not 17th century France. There the king had to complete the entire performance in front of his assembled courtiers to guarantee the integrity of the lineage.”

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

In summary, it’s fair to say Nelson Mandela left a lasting and profound impression on Jacques.

“I think he was comfortable in our dealings because he sensed my sharing of his values and the fact I never wanted anything from him. He called me Jacques and insisted I call him Nelson, but I never could, so we settled on Madiba.”

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