Flat Earth: Civil ex-servant

TRY to get through to the Cape Town office of F W de Klerk these days and you will no longer be greeted by the sturdy tones of an Afrikaner receptionist but by the engaging Afrikaans of a former domestic servant, Olga Tsoku. The multilingual Ms Tsoku says what she really enjoys about the job is seeing the president every day. Domestic service is an excellent training ground for would-be diplomats, and Ms Tsoku's skills suggest all our ambassadors should have a stint of cleaning other people's houses. Was she looking forward to seeing Nelson Mandela every day, too? 'Let's wait till after 27 April,' she said.