Some quotes from the article in the thread below

Former president Thabo Mbeki said he disagreed with the notion that the period during former president Jacob Zuma’s reign were “nine wasted years”, and detailed some of the good decisions that were made during those years

"The transference of the technical colleges back to national, was a correct decision, very correct. So we can’t say that was a wasted decision,” he said in an interview that was given to the Sunday Times"

Mbeki said the creation of the basic and higher education departments was also a “correct” decision that was taken in the very same “nine wasted years”  when Zuma took over. Though some problems worsened during Zuma’s years, Mbeki said they started way before Zuma took over

"For instance, if you look at Eskom, one of the big problems at Eskom which emerged was the drop in expenditure in terms of the maintenance of the power stations, in 2006, 2007, and so on. It started then. Of course it continues over the years, and gets worse and worse and worse"

"Sure, because of the time factor, they get worse, and worse and worse and erupt as a real crisis in the last nine years not because they started then."

Mbeki also said the reason he did not campaign for the ANC in the 2009 elections after being removed as president in 2008 was that the ANC had "veered off-course", leading to corruption, lawlessness, and hiring of too many civil servants