POLL | Did Thabo Mbeki join the election campaign trail too late?

As the final stretch for the May 29 election campaign approaches, political parties are coming out guns blazing to convince voters to choose them when they cast their ballots.

The ANC convinced former president Thabo Mbeki to join the campaign trail for the hotly contested elections.

Mbeki was seen on Thursday in jubilant spirits exchanging jokes and laughter with Soweto residents as he urged them to choose the governing party.

The ANC's announcement that he would campaign for the party came as a surprise to many as Mbeki had been highly critical of the party's top leadership.

Earlier this year the ANC tasked its head of elections, former KwaZulu-Natal provincial secretary Mdumiseni Ntuli, to convince Mbeki to help the party as it seeks re-election 30 years after taking power. 

He has spoken publicly about his disappointment in President Cyril Ramaphosa's failure to address socioeconomic issues such as poverty and the government's slow pace in combating corruption and arresting those accused of state capture.