The Casanova Club

Call it a god-given gift, or simply another feather on an already colourful political cap, but for several heads of states across the globe, their Casanova tendencies are but a pointer to their leadership qualities.

Topping the list of the most popular Don Juans in the club are South African President Jacob Zuma and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. But, unlike Zuma, who does his thing within the confines of his Zulu culture, the Italian premiere is famous not only for his Romeo side, but also for his high profile publicity stunts.

From corruption and image-enhancing cosmetic surgeries to cutting unethical anti-immigrant deals with Tripoli, the flair and pomp with which Berlusconi conducts his private life cuts the image of a debauch Roman emperor rather a country’s chief executive.

Top on the pile of sordid accusations against the tycoon-turned-politician are the infamous “bunga bunga” parties he is said to hold occasionally in his palatial villas across Italy. The Urban Dictionary defines ‘bunga bunga’ as an “erotic ritual that involves a powerful leader and several naked women”.

The latest episode in the 73-year-old’s dramatic lifestyle came to the limelight last October, when he intervened to secure the release of a teenage Moroccan belly dancer, Karima Kayek, who was arrested on suspicions of theft.

Berlusconi is said to have lied to the police that the teenage model was a relative of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Kayak later claimed she had witnessed orgies between showgirls and guests in several of these bunga bunga gatherings that she attended at the premier’s residence in Milan.

In an interview with Italian newspaper La Repubblica, the 17-year-old said she was part of a 10-girl team hosted by Berlusconi during last year’s Valentine’s Day dinner, during which the Italian PM purportedly gave her cash, jewellery and an Audi R8 car worth $70,000 (Sh5.6 million).

Dalliance with the young

This, however, is not the first time that the media mogul has been accused of dalliance with underage girls. While filing divorce proceedings in 2009, his former wife Veronica Lario accused the ‘rogue billionaire’ of having a spicy affair with aspiring teenage model Noemi Leitizia.

Berlusconi’s wife was riled by, among other things, her husband’s attendance of Leitizia’s exclusive 18th birthday party, during which he gifted the stunning beauty with an $8,000 (Sh640,000) gold-and-diamond necklace.

“That really surprised me because he has never come to the 18th birthday parties of any of our children, despite being invited,” Lario was quoted by the Italian media as saying.

Besides serving as his bedroom toys and playthings, Berlusconi uses his cohorts to enlist feminine sexual appeal to win votes and prop the image of his administration. Georgia Stracquadanio, a government MP, caused an uproar across the political spectrum when he said it was “absolutely legitimate” for women to use their sexual appeal to advance their political career.

“To develop a career, everyone uses what they have. Even their bodies... it is absolutely legitimate,” the legislator was quoted by the English newspaper Daily Telegraph as saying. “Everyone should use their body as they see fit. As long as there is consent and there is no violence, then there’s no problem”.

The controversial politician went on to add that if a female MP admitted to having secured her position in exchange for sexual favours, it should not constitute grounds for resignation or embarrassment.

Although he was strongly and roundly condemned by members from across the political divide, Stracquadanio underlined the unacknowledged philosophy of his boss, who, in several occasions, has bypassed brain for beauty to install showgirls and models with no political experience in government and parliament.

The current minister of Tourism, Michella Brambilla, is a former Miss Italy, better known for her high heels and short skirts than providing leadership; while her Equal Opportunities counterpart, Mara Carfagna, used to pose semi-nude for men’s magazines.

As if to confirm the huge role looks play in his administration, the Italian premier bought diamond rings worth $1,850 (Sh140,000) each for his 37 women MPs as a Christmas gift last year.

Nearer home, although there might be many contenders to the infamous title of the “African Berlusconi”, South African President Jacob Zuma claims the crown with relative ease.

Apart from fathering 21 children from five wives and several women, Zuma seems to be buddies with scandals, especially those of a sexual nature. Just before he tied the knot with Wife Number Five, the ANC leader is said to have fathered a baby girl with Sonono Khoza, a 39-year-old divorcee who is the daughter of Irvin Khoza, the Orlando Pirates boss, chief organiser of the 2010 World Cup and a close friend of Zuma’s.

And this is not the first time the studious Zuma has been accused of being sexually embroiled with a friend’s daughter. In 2005 he was entangled in a career-threatening court case in which he was charged with raping the daughter of a deceased friend at his home in Forest Town.

Although the then 31-year-old woman was said to be HIV-positive, it was alleged that Zuma had unprotected sex, but he explained that he had taken a shower immediately to avoid contracting the virus.

Setting a bad example

The statement evoked condemnation from the judge, health experts, AIDS activists and the general public, all of whom accused the ANC leader of setting a bad example in a country where an estimated five million people are HIV-positive (the highest number in the world). Fezeka Kuzwayo, the woman in question, has since been granted asylum in the Netherlands.

During the World Cup last year, the president’s name was yet again in the headlines for the wrong reasons after media reports revealed his second wife, Nompumelelo Ntuli, was carrying a baby fathered by one of her private bodyguards.

But, despite all these embarrassing incidences, the 68-year-old head of state is unapologetic about his marital and sexual lifestyle, saying it’s part and parcel of his Zulu roots.

“That’s my culture. It does not take anything from me, from my political beliefs and everything, including the belief on the equality of women,” the South African leader told CNN during the World Economic Forum in Switzerland last year, adding that the reason many people faulted his polygamous nature was that they “think their culture is the only right one… the only one accepted by God.”

Far up north, although he is not as explicit and blatant with his bedroom matters as Jacob Zuma, Col Muammar Gaddafi’s close ties with female company are a widely documented affair.

The Libyan strongman is famous for tagging along a huge entourage of women bodyguards whenever he travels abroad.

Popularly known as “The Amazons”, their strikingly gorgeous faces are said to belie the deadly potential cultivated through years of sophisticated military training and martial arts combat drills.

These skills — and a deep, loving devotion — are rumoured to have saved Gaddafi from several assassination attempts, with one of the loyal ladies reportedly taking a bullet meant for the leader in Athens in 1998.

The exalted status of these superwomen affords them luxuries that the traditional Arab woman can only dream of. They wear makeup, expose their long flowing hair, sport matching camouflaged military uniforms, and, sometimes, carry big guns, a feat that has earned them the description “Bond Girls” who “wear Kalashnikovs like Gucci fashion accessories”.

Ruthless aides

Besides propping the colonel’s image when he makes grand entrees in functions and standing outside his Bedouin tent, these femme fatales are known to be ruthless against anyone who stands on their way, from doormen to waiters and foreign security personnel.

The flashy bodyguards caused a stir in Lagos during an international summit in 2006 when Nigerian police and airport officials, amazed by the sheer amount of weapons and ammunition that Gaddafi’s 200-plus bodyguards were carrying, refused them entry into the country.

A heated argument ensued between the Gaddafi beauties and the Nigerians. The Libyan leader, not used to playing second fiddle to anyone, angrily stormed off, intending to walk some 40 kilometres to the capital before being persuaded to return to the airport lounge. It took the intervention of the then Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo to convince the reluctant Libyans to relinquish their weapons.

“Without the leader, women in Libya would be nothing. He gave us life. I am ready to die for him anytime,” one of the guards told the BBC Focus on Africa magazine. “He is a father, a brother and a friend in whom you can confide”.

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