A South African court on Friday ordered the return of former Zambian President Edgar Lungu’s body for a state funeral, siding with Zambia’s government over his family, who wanted him buried in South Africa rather than in front of his successor.
Lungu, Zambia’s president from 2015 to 2021, died on June 5 in South Africa while undergoing medical treatment.
South Africa’s high court blocked plans for his burial in Johannesburg on June 25, hours before a private ceremony was scheduled to begin.
Zambia’s government had contacted the court, stating that the ex-president, like all other presidents since Zambia’s independence from Britain in 1964, should be accorded a state burial and buried at a specified site in the Zambian capital, Lusaka.
His family stated he did not want current President Hakainde Hichilema, a long-time political foe and successor, to attend his funeral.
On Friday, a Pretoria high court judge ordered that Lungu’s body be turned over to a representative from Zambia’s court system for repatriation.
Bertha Lungu, Lungu’s sister, burst into tears once the judgement was read.
Zambia’s Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha, who was also present in court, stated that the government respected the judge’s verdict.
Analysts believe the ex-president’s legacy as president was chequered.
He was praised for a big road-building initiative, but he accumulated a massive debt burden that the Southern African country has been struggling to resolve.
