South Africa prepares to swear in Jacob Zuma as fourth democratic president

Crowds of more than 30,000 are expected to gather at the Union Buildings in the country's capital Pretoria for the ceremony.

They will join 29 heads of state and government who are also due to attend, including Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Mr Zuma was elected president by members of Parliament on Wednesday, after the ANC won the general election in South Africa two weeks ago.

Flanked by stuffed lions and antelope, he will take to the podium in the Union Building's amphitheatre on Saturday to be sworn in to office.

It marks the culmination of a remarkable journey for Mr Zuma, who was born 67 years ago in a remote village in rural KwaZulu-Natal.

His political ambitions seemed over when he was sacked as deputy president in 2005, following the conviction of his financial adviser for soliciting bribes for him.

Related charges against Mr Zuma have twice been dropped on technical grounds, he has been acquitted of rape, and he was finally formally elected president earlier this week, having led the African National Congress to victory at the general election with 65.9 per cent of the vote.

"It's an extraordinary comeback for a person who 4 1/2 years ago was unceremoniously removed as deputy president," said Carl Niehaus, who stepped down as an ANC spokesman a few months ago after being embroiled in financial scandals, and was among the first to arrive for the ceremony. "It's a triumph for his tenacity."

Mr Zuma's populist appeal is epitomised by his energetic performances of his trademark anthem Umshini Wami, Bring Me My Machine Gun.

With 19 children, he makes no secret of his polygamy, and was due to be accompanied by all three of his wives for the ceremony, although it is not yet clear which of them, if any, will be designated as the first lady.

He first married Sizakele Khumalo, a reticent traditional Zulu woman who still lives in his home village of Nxamalala, more than 40 years ago and who according to reports was to be provided with a translator for the ceremony.

Last year he wed Nompumelelo Ntuli, the flamboyant mother of two of his children, and earlier this year formalised his relationship with Thobeka Mabhija, a Durban socialite, who has one child by him.

He is also divorced from South Africa's outgoing foreign minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, and another wife, Kate, committed suicide.

But as president he will have to try to meet the expectations of all South Africans, as well as manage rivalries within his own party.

Their intensity has been demonstrated by squabbles over the make-up of his cabinet, with the outgoing deputy president Baleka Mbete refusing to take the oath as an ANC MP as she demanded to retain her post or be given the foreign ministry.

Instead she has been "redeployed", in ANC terminology, to work for the party at its headquarters, while Kgalema Motlanthe, installed as president after Thabo Mbeki was sacked last year, will become Mr Zuma's number two.