Zanu-PF bootlickers, hangers-on and sycophants have been falling over each other to wish Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe many more years in power

The octogenarian, who on April 18 this year marks 30 years in power, has been compared to God in newspaper and television adverts.

Mugabe, who turned 86 last Sunday, was feted at an exclusive bash in Bulawayo, the country's second-largest city, on Friday.

Among the artists picked to entertain at the Bulawayo bash was Jamaican reggae icon Sizzla Kalonji.

"I am honoured to be in Zimbabwe to grace birthday celebrations of a great revolutionary leader and Pan-Africanist who is fighting to uplift the livelihoods of marginalised Africans - President Mugabe," the musician gushed to journalists.

Other entertainers billed to perform for the occasion - at which Zanu-PF bigwigs had no qualms about showing off their designer clothes, cars and other bling - included South Africa's Soul Brothers and Mzwakhe Mbuli.

But Friday's bash paled in comparison to the adverts praising Mugabe - which have been flighted since the beginning of February as Zanu-PF supporters, army, police and other securocrats spent thousands of dollars to sponsor colourful, slavish messages in support of the president.

The parliament of Zimbabwe, whose secretariat is packed with Zanu-PF apologists, paid for an ad in which Mugabe was described as "a torchbearer of African self-determination, an embodiment of black empowerment who encapsulates true African values, an icon of emancipation of the black majority from the yoke of colonial oppression".

It continued: "Revered by friends and foes alike, the consolidation of the gains of revolution requires that we leave no room for complacency and that we emulate your illustrious life of dedication and commitment to justice."

Didymus Mutasa, the Zanu-PF secretary for administration and a minister of state in Mugabe's office, described Mugabe as "a special gift God gave to Zimbabwe and Africa as a whole".

In a praise-singing article in one of the government newspapers, the Mugabe spin-doctor said the octogenarian had proved to be "a great visionary and revolutionary. He was an object of cynosure held in both veneration and reverence among other African leaders and in some international circles.

"He has remained resolutely steadfast and as constant as the Northern Star. Under his astute leadership Zimbabwe has enjoyed a flourishing democracy, thriving on the corner stone of a multiparty system, tolerance and reconciliation around which egalitarianism is built ...

"No amount of hate speech or the smearing mudslinging can blinker and distract him from championing causes that add value to the world order."

While Mugabe is being applauded by his supporters, nearly two million Zimbabwean's are dependent on food aid to survive.

IRIN News reported that about 1.6 million Zimbabweans will be food-insecure between January and March 2010, with about 1.9 million receiving food aid.

The report, based on an update compiled by several UN agencies, said at least 35% of children in Zimbabwe are severely malnourished.

The report noted that Zimbabwe's economic recovery was sluggish and that the provision of basic services is still problematic. The amount of foreign currency in circulation was also very limited

By Special correspondent

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