What kind of gift would you give a man who is not merely a father, grandfather and great-grandfather, but also an uncle, mentor, statesman, heroic symbol and emotional fantasy-figure?
As the Mail & Guardian discovered when it recently embarked on a survey of gifts sent to President Nelson Mandela, his fans have not merely targeted his stomach, but his taste in shirts, shoes, and art.
Unlike his predecessor, FW de Klerk, Mandela is inundated with gifts. In fact, so overwhelming is the daily influx that four staff members have been assigned the task of taking care of them. And they cannot cope.
“It’s become impossible for us to keep track of how many presents he receives from month to month,” says his personal assistant Mary Mxadana. “The only thing we can do is religiously document them, store them and send out thank-you notes.”
The first two tasks have been assigned to presidential staffers Alan Pillay and Percy Makgatla. With military precision they unwrap the gifts, listing each according to item, name of sender and postal address. This is essential for sending out thank-you cards, which are penned by assistant secretary Elise Wessels.
The staff provided a list of gifts from the past few weeks. It was 16 pages long and ranged from a selection of local teas from Botswana to zebra-skin leggings for his daughter, Zinzi.
According to official government policy, all state gifts must be declared. But this, according to Mxadana, presents its own set of problems, as the distinction between state and private presents becomes blurred.
“Basically, we use our discretion in determining what are state and what are private presents,” she explains. “Medallions addressed to he Republic of South Africa, from another country, for example, will automatically be catalogued as such. Party gifts will usually bear the colours or insignia of the African National Congress. But the overwhelming majority of presents sent to the president are of a personal nature.”
After their details have been documented, the gifts are packed in crates and transferred by lorry to the president’s residence in Houghton, Johannesburg, or to the ANC offices.
At this point, Mxadana embarks on what can only be described as Madiba’s “mission impossible”: finding space for the never-ending convoy of treasure-chests.
“We try to display many of the artworks in his office and home, but most of them have to be stored in a special room at his house. Sometimes we have to redecorate his rooms in order to accommodate even a small percentage of them,” she explains, indicating a bronze lion from the Cameroons lying on the floor of his recently revamped office.
Then there’s the sculpted caryatid stool from Mozambique’s President Chissano, and a set of oriental vases from Japan. And pride of place goes to a lifesize painting of the president and his daughter Zinzi at her wedding, painted by Senegalese artist Prince, whose other illustrious subjects include the Sexwale family.
Some of the gifts are not merely for display but consumption, such as the tons of steak, chops and boerewors regularly sent to him by South African farmers. But before the president can even contemplate a braaivleis that will send his cholesterol levels hurtling into the next millenium, he invites the South African Bureau of Standards to sample the feast. Just in case.
One of his quirkier gifts is a boxing glove — left- handed — signed by George Foreman and Mohammed Ali. Then there’s the sweatshirt emblazoned with “University of Robben Island” on the front and “Graduated Cum Laude” on the rear, while a suave black towellng robe with matching towels — a present from the Kathrada family — has “President Madiba” embroidered on it.
His stature as a peacemaker is demonstrated by the Bibles and Korans he regularly receives. One of the most beautiful of these — encased in silver — was sent by the mayor of Bethlehem. And, as a birthday gift, an admirer from Portugal sent him a bottle of vintage wine marked 1918 — the year in which he was
But undoubtedly, his most precious gifts are from children who write “Tata we love you” and decorate their offerings with hearts and flowers.
Since his appearance on the field during the Rugby World Cup final, he has been indundated with number 6 jerseys from around the world. As for his trademark shirts, during a recent televised conversation with couturier Pierre Cardin, Madiba remarked that all his shirts are gifts and that he wears every single one of
The only clothes the president refuses to wear are promotional T-shirts, Mxadana stresses.
To date, the president has received neither underwear nor erotica as personal gifts. But, as the country’s most eligible divorcee-to-be, he’s obviously regarded as quite a catch. One admirer sent him a tape on which she sang “I’ll follow you anywhere”, and a man from Durban sent a photograph of his daughter with a note extolling her virtues. Apparently Madiba took one look and exclaimed: “She could be my granddaughter!”
But does the president have a personal favourite? According to staff, he examines each present and loves them all.
“President Mandela receives gifts on behalf of the people of South Africa,” explains an ANC spokesperson. “He regards nothing as his personal property. And when other priorities are taken care of, we will build a museum to house these offerings to our nation.”
But if the barrage of gifts does not abate, Madiba himself might be forced to move house to accommodate his gifts.