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Hichilema wants Lungu's body for ritual purposes?
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In a dramatic escalation of posthumous tensions, Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema's government has filed an urgent court application seeking to block the burial of former President Edgar Lungu in South Africa, where his family had scheduled the funeral for tomorrow.
The state insists that Lungu, who served as Zambia's sixth republican president, must be buried in his home country, arguing that the interment of a former head of state is a matter of public interest and must follow official national protocols.
The government's legal application marks a desperate bid to have the body returned to Lusaka, citing the need for a burial that aligns with state procedures and presidential tradition. However, Lungu's family remains defiant.
"The government's insistence is both hypocritical and deeply personal," a family spokesperson said. "They stripped him of his benefits in life, and now they want to dictate what happens in death. There is no law in Zambia that mandates where a president must be buried, or that the sitting president must preside over such ceremonies."
The family has also accused President Hichilema's administration of ulterior motives, including disturbing claims of "ritual interests" in accessing Lungu's remains - allegations that have added a sensational twist and potentially damaging reputational fallout for Zambia.
Meanwhile, diplomatic sources revealed that South African President Cyril Ramaphosa dispatched Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola to Lusaka earlier this week in an attempt to defuse tensions. Lamola reportedly informed Hichilema that the South African government could not interfere in the private funeral arrangements of a foreign citizen, citing constitutional limitations and the independence of state institutions.
"The Zambian President was told in clear terms that South Africa's laws do not allow political interference in such personal matters," a South African government official confirmed.
The standoff has drawn comparisons to a similar episode in Zimbabwe in 2019, when the late former President Robert Mugabe's family defied government efforts to bury him at the National Heroes Acre in Harare. Mugabe's widow, Grace Mugabe, stood her ground amid speculation about alleged rituals, ultimately burying the former leader at his rural homestead in Zvimba.
Despite government pressure and a legal attempt to exhume Mugabe's body, the burial remains undisturbed.
Zambia now finds itself embroiled in a near-identical controversy, with observers warning that the government's aggressive approach risks inflaming public sentiment and damaging its international image.
At the time of publication, the court in Lusaka had yet to rule on the state's urgent application. However, unless an extraordinary legal intervention occurs, the Lungu family remains determined to proceed with the burial in South Africa as planned.
The state insists that Lungu, who served as Zambia's sixth republican president, must be buried in his home country, arguing that the interment of a former head of state is a matter of public interest and must follow official national protocols.
The government's legal application marks a desperate bid to have the body returned to Lusaka, citing the need for a burial that aligns with state procedures and presidential tradition. However, Lungu's family remains defiant.
"The government's insistence is both hypocritical and deeply personal," a family spokesperson said. "They stripped him of his benefits in life, and now they want to dictate what happens in death. There is no law in Zambia that mandates where a president must be buried, or that the sitting president must preside over such ceremonies."
The family has also accused President Hichilema's administration of ulterior motives, including disturbing claims of "ritual interests" in accessing Lungu's remains - allegations that have added a sensational twist and potentially damaging reputational fallout for Zambia.
Meanwhile, diplomatic sources revealed that South African President Cyril Ramaphosa dispatched Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola to Lusaka earlier this week in an attempt to defuse tensions. Lamola reportedly informed Hichilema that the South African government could not interfere in the private funeral arrangements of a foreign citizen, citing constitutional limitations and the independence of state institutions.
"The Zambian President was told in clear terms that South Africa's laws do not allow political interference in such personal matters," a South African government official confirmed.
The standoff has drawn comparisons to a similar episode in Zimbabwe in 2019, when the late former President Robert Mugabe's family defied government efforts to bury him at the National Heroes Acre in Harare. Mugabe's widow, Grace Mugabe, stood her ground amid speculation about alleged rituals, ultimately burying the former leader at his rural homestead in Zvimba.
Despite government pressure and a legal attempt to exhume Mugabe's body, the burial remains undisturbed.
Zambia now finds itself embroiled in a near-identical controversy, with observers warning that the government's aggressive approach risks inflaming public sentiment and damaging its international image.
At the time of publication, the court in Lusaka had yet to rule on the state's urgent application. However, unless an extraordinary legal intervention occurs, the Lungu family remains determined to proceed with the burial in South Africa as planned.
Source - online
