Zuma's Fifa VIP fiasco
2010-05-23 13:00
S'Busiso Mseleku and Moffet Mofokeng
President Jacob Zuma has created a
diplomatic nightmare for Fifa by inviting more
heads of state and their partners to the opening ceremony of the 2010 Fifa World Cup than the VVIP section at Soccer City
Stadium can accommodate.
Zuma also faces a crisis over where
to accommodate the leaders and their spouses because of a shortage of rooms.
Fifa has block-booked most of the accommodation
usually used by visiting heads of state and government.
Now Zuma’s guests might also suffer
embarrassment as some of them might not even make it into the VVIP lounge
because there are not enough seats.
Highly placed government sources told City Press that 50 of the 52
African heads of state had accepted the invitation and Zuma would bring his three wives – Sizakele Khumalo,
Nompumelo Ntuli and Thobeka Madiba, and fiancée Gloria Ngema, to the
shindig.
This has created a seating problem at the event as the presidential
suite where the VVIPs are to sit has only 120 seats, while the VIP area seats only 600 guests. Both the areas are
shared on a 50/50 basis between Fifa and the Local
Organising Committee (LOC).
Some heads of state would have to be demoted to the VIP area as not all of them can be housed in the VVIP
area, which would house the likes of Zuma,
Mexico’s President Felipe Calderón and Fifa
president Sepp Blatter.
According to City Press sources, Zuma’s insistence on bringing his four partners had
also created a nightmare as all spouses were supposed to be seated behind
their partners during the ceremony.
Fifa protocol dictates that Zuma sits next to Calderón during the event as South
Africa will be playing his country in the opening match at Soccer City. Mexican
first lady Margarita Zavala should be seated behind her husband.
Organisers are now planning to erect a temporary stand behind Zuma where his three wives and fiancée can sit.
Unconfirmed reports are that Nelson Mandela will also be present
and is likely to sit between Zuma and
Blatter.
Former president Thabo Mbeki confirmed that he would attend and is
likely to be seated on the other side of the Mexican president.
Other VVIPs are also causing a headache, with US Vice-President
Joe Biden said to be bringing an entourage of 300 people.
Organisers are said to have disregarded this number and expect the
US embassy to handle the entourage’s accommodation and tickets for the
match.
Former ANC Women’s League president Winnie Madikizela-Mandela is
also contributing to the nightmare. She is said to be asking for 19 tickets
more than the six she has been allocated.
Madikizela-Mandela and the US embassy could not be reached for
comment yesterday.
To deal with the accommodation crisis, City Press understands that
some African ambassadors are being asked to vacate their official residences for
their presidents.
At the last African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Zuma verbally invited all African heads of state to
attend the opening ceremony. Written invitations, however, were sent to only 50
heads of state.
Zuma’s spokesperson, Vincent
Magwenya, refused to comment on whether Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir had
been invited.
He said, however, the South African government recognised that
al-Bashir was the legitimate head of state in Sudan after last month’s
election.
Magwenya said: “They just had elections there and al-Bashir was
elected as president.”
The dilemma for Zuma, though, is that
the South African government would be obliged to arrest al-Bashir if he were to
come to South Africa, since the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued a
warrant against him.
In Zimbabwe, Zuma’s invitation to
Robert Mugabe could be seen as endorsement of the dictator who is locked in a
power dispute with his rival, Morgan Tsvangirai.
Magwenya declined to give details on which of the invited heads of
state had accepted Zuma’s invitation.
LOC spokesperson Rich Mkhondo yesterday said: “I can confirm that
there is a huge demand for VVIP and VIP tickets
for the opening and closing, but I cannot confirm the seating arrangements as
they are handled by our protocol and government’s international relations
department.”
- City Press