PRETORIA, May 24 (AFP): South African President Jacob Zuma vowed to spearhead a "radical social economic transformation" as he was sworn in for a second term before dignitaries and a cheering crowd of thousands on Saturday.
"Today marks the beginning of the second phase of our transition from apartheid to a national democratic society," he said, promising more black empowerment and a bigger economic role for the state.
The ceremony took place in the amphitheatre of Pretoria's English colonial-style Union Buildings-the seat of government-where just five months before Nelson Mandela's body lay in state.
Zuma paid tribute to the former leader and founder of the nation, hailing the work he did to transform South Africa from international pariah to toast of the world.
Kings, presidents and prime ministers from across Africa, including Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe and Nigeria's Goodluck Jonathan, but none from Europe or North America, looked on.
Zuma had a rocky first term, repeatedly criticised for alleged corruption and high unemployment, as well as enduring daily protests over poor public services.
After a turbulent five years there was an air of relief about Saturday's celebrations.
After chief justice Mogoeng Mogoeng administered the oath of office and concluded the legal formalities Zuma broke into a broad smile.
A traditional praise singer clad in leopard skin hailed Zuma as a "warrior for social justice" declaring "the bones of our ancestors are vibrating" as women in the audience ululated.
Military helicopters and a low-flying South African Airways Airbus A340-600 buzzed the crowd, reliving a similar jubilant fly-over a decade earlier when the newly freed "Rainbow Nation" won the rugby world cup in Johannesburg.
But the mood of the nation is much changed as Zuma enters the coda of a deeply controversial political career.
Mandela is gone, and so too the youthful exuberance of a reborn nation released from decades of racist rule.
