Mandela hosts final birthday bash

July 20, 2008

At the event, the leader of South Africa's ruling party called former president Nelson Mandela "the glue" holding the country together. The African National Congress leader, Jacob Zuma, gave voice to long-held fears about the future of the fledgling democracy without Mandela. Zuma was among 500 invited guests, including President Thabo Mbeki and former Zambian leader Kenneth Kaunda, at a final lavish birthday banquet Mandela hosted at his homestead in the eastern Cape.