By Jacob PC Ntuntu
A DEFINING JUDGMENT for POSTERITY: The Lungu Burial Judgment and the Rule of Law
From day one, I have insisted that the actions of the state against the Lungu family in this dispute over his remains were lawless, illegal, and an abuse of the fundamental rights of the deceased and his family.
The state acted in contradiction to common sense and to our Christian values—Ubuntu bwine bwine. Supporting grieving families does not involve imposing our wishes upon them, no matter how right or powerful we believe ourselves to be.
Over the last year, this position has earned us more than enough insults and accusations from fellow citizens who interpret every dissenting view of the state through partisan lenses.
Today, the Supreme Court of South Africa has vindicated our position. The Government of Zambia has lamentably failed to establish its right to override the wishes of the family under either the Constitution or common law.
In simple terms, the Supreme Court agrees that the actions of the state were both illegal and lawless.
The judgment states: “The Zambian government’s failure to establish a right under common law to override the family’s burial decision is fatal to its case.”
Further: “The court concluded that the Zambian Government had failed to establish any legal basis for overriding the wishes of Mr. Lungu’s family. It found no convincing evidence that Zambian law, custom, or official protocol granted the state the power to decide the burial arrangements of a deceased former president against the wishes of his relatives.”
Therefore, the entire argument about precedent, custom, and state protocol turned out to be no more than Chibuku stories (amalyashi yamu nsaka sha Chibuku).
As veteran journalist and former Presidential Spokesperson during President Lungu’s administration Amos Chanda stated, a day before this judgment, that the entire process had become a colossal embarrassment for the nation.
The good side of this judgment is that it provides clear direction to the nation on how to handle such matters in the future.
We now have a clear legal reference point. Going forward, emotions can be quickly quashed by a simple reference to this judgment.
The judgment is both historic and defining. It establishes a clear legal framework for generations to come.
This is a sweet victory for Zambia’s future generations because it affirms that upholding the fundamental rights of individuals is more important than our feelings, no matter how powerful or justified we may feel.
This judgment is a victory for posterity in the defence of the fundamental rights of individuals and families.
The state – both present and future – must never assume that it possesses the primary right to grieve a person who has an immediate family.
While many of us may have loved and respected Mr. Lungu, only Mrs. Esther Lungu, Tasila, the other children, and close relatives possess the primary right to determine how the mourning process should proceed. The same principle applies to every one of us reading this article.
The end of this long and unnecessary legal battle should serve as a lesson to us all.
✔️This judgment is a lesson in upholding the fundamental freedoms and rights of individuals and their families.
✔️This judgment is a lesson that the fact that something was done illegally once or twice before does not legalise the illegality.
✔️This judgment is a lesson that, sooner or later, any abuse directed at individuals during their moment of greatest vulnerability eventually collapses under scrutiny.
✔️This judgment is a lesson that those entrusted with instruments of power must guard against abusing processes merely to demonstrate that they are powerful.
When we have power, we must remember that people already know that we are powerful. We must always remember to rule with mercy and love.
#ForTheClergy
For the clergy, this judgment also offers an important lesson to the clergy, particularly those of us who actively participate in national and governance conversations.
One of my friends and fellow pastors has offered the following advice, which I find both empowering and timely:
✍️ Let us treat funeral matters with the sensitivity and wisdom they deserve. We must guard against being overtaken by emotions and against siding with the strong against the weak.
✍️ In most funeral matters, politicians are not the key players – we, the clergy, are. Therefore, we must guard against allowing our contributions to be driven by partisan affiliations or political sympathies.
✍️ Politicians may struggle to be objective because of their political inclinations. We, however, have no such excuse. As clergy, we must call a wrong a wrong and a right a right.
In this matter, many of us chose the safe side rather than the right side.
#WAYFORWARD
I pray that the state will be magnanimous enough not only to accept this ruling but also to extend an olive branch to the family by engaging in fresh discussions on how it can support them in ensuring that the remains of His Excellency, the Sixth President of Zambia, Mr Edgar are laid to rest in a dignified manner while fully respecting his wishes and those of his family.
May God bless Zambia.
May God bless Africa.
#Ubuntu