Soweto – President Jacob Zuma hit out at critics of his ANC government as he went on the campaign trail on Friday in Soweto ahead of 2014 elections.

Zuma went door-to-door in Orlando, a day after he visited Nelson Mandela in hospital.

Zuma used the occasion to slam critics who allege he has mismanaged the economy and allowed labour unrest to fester.

He launched a robust defence of his administration, accusing people of forgetting the scale of the problems he faces.

“They’ve forgotten that this government is trying to fix problems that have been there for centuries,” Zuma told students at the University of Johannesburg’s Soweto campus.

Schoolchildren and university students sang songs wherever he went, waving ANC flags.

“Get well, Mandela, get well!” was a popular chant as the country’s Madiba marked a week in hospital for a recurrent lung disease.

The DA, meanwhile, prepared for a big rally in Johannesburg on Saturday.

The ANC won 65.9% of votes in 2009 polls.

The DA took 16.7% in the previous national elections, but their representation in Gauteng province shot to over 33% in municipal vote in 2011.

The state looks set to be a battle ground at the next election.

AFP