President Jacob Zuma visited Nelson Mandela -- seen here in a file photograph -- on Sunday
Loosely translated from isiZulu, he sang on Wednesday: "We are walking a long distance, so said Nelson Mandela to his supporters."
Dipping his body into the song, as the red-clothed delegates harmonised and ululated, Zuma sang several refrains.
On Sunday, his office broke the news that former president NelsonMandela was critically ill, after being in hospital with a recurring lung infection since June 8.
When he finished the song, Zuma began his prepared speech. He was addressing the conference in his capacity as ANC president.
School children pay tribute
Meanwhile, school children from around the Eastern Cape sang and prayed for Mandela outside his home in Qunu on Wednesday afternoon.
The children, who are part of a programme run by the Nelson Mandela Leadership Institute, held a poster they had prepared for the 94-year-old former president, who is in a critical condition in a Pretoria hospital. "We always used to enjoy knowing that he was in the house when we came past," said Nokuzula Tatane, a spokesperson for the Nelson Mandela Museum in Qunu.
"We enjoyed sharing this space with him in Qunu. We miss him and we want him to come back." Tatane said the children were worried about Mandela and had wanted to come to the house to wish him well.
'Values and ethics'
​Qiniso van Damme, a facilitator for the programme, said the aim was to teach the children the values and ethics espoused by Mandela.
"Our programme runs different electives to bring talents out of the children," she said.
"We try to teach the values and ethics that mirror Nelson Mandela's values. We decided to do a message for him because we are down the road. We really hope he gets better." Members of Mandela's family met at the house on Tuesday.
United Democratic Movement leader Bantu Holomisa, who attended the meeting with the Mandela elders, Mandela's eldest daughter Makaziwe Mandela, his grandson Mandla Mandela, and Public Service and Administration Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, said the purpose of the meeting was to brief the elders about Mandela's condition.
"With some family members living in Johannesburg and others in the Eastern Cape, it becomes important to make sure everyone is kept up to speed with the developments," Holomisa told the Mail & Guardian. "One does not want to leave the elders behind." – Sapa