MEDICAL Research Council president Malegapuru Makgoba has condemned what he called the exploitation of young Aids activist Nkosi Johnson in efforts to demonise President Thabo Mbeki. He said people chose to sow doubt on the government’s commitment to fighting HIV/Aids, and when Mbeki tried to clarify his position, they either did not want or chose not to hear. “Recently we have even gone one step further by exploiting sick children to demonise the president as uncaring,” Makgoba said at a Cape Town Press Club lunch at Crossroads near Cape Town. “We are using single individuals to hold our leadership ransom. Is this how we want to evolve as a society?”