South Africa prepares to swear in Jacob Zuma, who faces tough challenges

South Africa prepares to swear in new president

PRETORIA, South Africa — South Africans started gathering before dawn and danced in chilly rain Saturday as the country prepared to swear in Jacob Zuma with an excitement that recalled Nelson Mandela’s 1994 inauguration.

Zuma, the fourth president since apartheid ended 15 years ago, enjoys a popularity often compared to Mandela’s. Many impoverished black South Africans believe Zuma’s personal battles and eventual triumph give him special insight into their own struggles and aspirations.

Zuma overcame corruption and sex scandals and an internal power struggle so vicious it led to a split in his African National Congress party. The ANC won last month’s parliamentary elections and Zuma was elected president by parliament on Wednesday.

Heavy rain began to fall Saturday as VIPs arrived. The crowd on the lawn in jeans and ANC T-shirts kept dancing, while the dignitaries in chic furs or traditional dress raised black umbrellas distributed by protocol officers.

The crowd on the lawn in jeans and ANC T-shirts kept dancing in the downpour, while dignitaries in chic furs or traditional dress raised black umbrellas distributed by protocol officers.

Tens of thousands broke into spontaneous song when Zuma arrived, beaming, accompanied by his senior wife, Sizakele Khumalo. Zuma’s unabashed polygamy has raised questions about which of his three current wives may act as first lady. On Saturday, all three were reported present but only Khumalo accompanied him to the stage, where Zuma dropped down onto his knees before Mandela in a traditional sign of respect.

Sydney Mokoena, a 48-year-old Pretoria high school teacher, roused his 10-year-old daughter, Thula, at 4:30 a.m. to get to the lawns early. He said he admired Zuma for the calm he showed during his legal battles over corruption allegations that have now been dropped and a 2006 rape trial that ended with acquittal.

Mokoena also said that while Zuma may not have had much formal education, his leadership of the ANC’s intelligence wing during the anti-apartheid struggle was proof he was smart enough to be president.

Zuma will be “a dynamic and vibrant president,” Mokoena said. “That’s what South Africa needs. He’s down to earth and he’ll listen.”

Mokoena laughed when Thula said she hoped for a glimpse of Mandela. Frail at 90 years old, Mandela makes few appearances, but he arrived for Saturday’s inauguration in a golf cart to applause, wolf whistles and the announcer’s cheer of “Viva Mandela, Viva.”

“We can have three or four or five presidents, people will still be talking about Mandela,” Mokoena said.

Mandela and Zuma share rural roots and an easy warmth in crowds, though Zuma’s origins are much humbler.

Mandela, 90, has ties to Xhosa tribal royalty and was groomed for leadership from an early age, attending some of the best schools and universities then open to blacks and earning a law degree.

Zuma, 67, herded cows instead of attending school as a boy, began working as a teen to help his impoverished family, and rose through the trade union movement and the African National Congress guerrilla force.

Cindy Ngcobo, a 32-year-old unemployed photographer from the coastal city of Durban, said she and her neighbors rented a van and traveled all night to arrive at 4 a.m.

She and Zuma are both Zulu, but she said he would be “president for all of us” and fight crime, corruption and joblessness.

“We don’t even have mielies at home,” she said, referring to corn, a South African staple food. “So we need to fight poverty. Some people need homes.”

The ANC government has built more than 2 million homes since apartheid ended. In 1994, the party estimated it needed to build 3 million homes. With population growth, migration to the cities and other factors, the housing backlog now stands at more than 2 million despite the building boom.

At least a quarter of South Africa’s work force is unemployed and 1,000 people die of AIDS every day.

Zuma has promised to speed up delivery of houses, clinics, schools, running water and electricity. But he also has acknowledged the difficulties.

Amid a worldwide recession, South Africa’s economy slipped 1.8 percent during the last quarter of 2008, and a further decrease in gross domestic product was expected when the first quarter 2009 figures come in. The nation of about 50 million has seen Western demand plummet for the cars it manufactures and the gold and platinum it mines. According to government figures this week, 208,000 jobs were lost between the last quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009.

Zuma is a populist former union activist whose rise to power was supported by the South African Communist Party, a traditional ANC ally. His Cabinet post announcements Sunday will be closely watched, with some counting how many communists he includes.

But respected Finance Minister Trevor Manuel is expected to play a prominent role in Zuma’s administration. His free-market policies are credited with increasing economic growth before the global downturn.

With so many domestic priorities, Zuma may have little time for foreign affairs. But he cannot ignore what is going on across the border.

Thousands of Zimbabweans have fled their country’s economic and political crises. In South Africa, they burden already struggling schools and hospitals. Resentment from South Africans who see the newcomers as competitors for jobs and housing has led to violence.

Zuma had criticized predecessor Thabo Mbeki’s “quiet diplomacy,” but has softened his tone since that policy led to a deal that in February brought longtime Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe into a unity government alongside rivals he once tried to suppress with violence and vote fraud.

Mugabe arrived at the ceremony, winning cheers from some dignitaries though his presence has drawn protests from South African human rights activists.

Other inaugural guests included Libya’s Moammar Gadhafi, Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni and Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame. Presidents from a score of African countries are expected, signaling South Africa’s importance as the biggest economic powerhouse on the continent, and its leading role in resolving conflicts and sending troops for peacekeeping missions.