Mugabe inherits Gaddafi's 'king of kings' gownBy KITSEPILE NYATHI | Saturday, March 10  2012 at  10:52

A Kenyan traditional leader has presented Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe with a black and gold gown once donned by disposed Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Mr Kamlesh Mandoo Pattni, who was introduced as the leader of the east African country’s House of Traditional Elders, said the veteran ruler was the "natural successor" to Col Gaddafi.

The eccentric Libyan dictator often styled himself as Africa’s king of kings and regularly summoned the continent’s traditional leaders to Tripoli for meetings as he sought their support to become the leader of a United States of Africa.

"I got the gown from Gaddafi before he died and after his death Mugabe is the only African leader who deserves to have it,” Mr Pattni said.

"Mugabe is the next African chief…so am handing this gown to Mugabe.”

Col Gaddafi, who was killed in October, was crowned "king of kings" in 2008 by African chiefs and traditional leaders who he met in the city of Benghazi and lavished gifts on them.

"We want an African military to defend Africa, we want a single African currency, we want one African passport to travel within African,” he said then.

President Mugabe has recently attacked fellow leaders accusing them of failing the continent. He also criticised African countries for allowing NATO to intervene in Libya.

Traditional chiefs in Zimbabwe had on Wednesday said they would back President Mugabe to rule for life because he “is a chief.”

The leaders are accused of being dabbling in partisan party politics as they openly support the veteran ruler’s Zanu-PF party.

At their conference this week they tabled several demands including personal guns, $650 monthly allowances, farms and shares in foreign mining companies.

The chiefs already receive vehicle allocations from the government at least once every five years.