Chasing a Coffin: The Political Gamble Behind Kabesha’s Pretoria Court Move
By Dr Lawrence Mwelwa
What are you up to?
Is this the final blow to an already reckless mishandling of a delicate national moment, or just the climax of a government so intoxicated with power that it dares drag its own constitution through a foreign court to settle scores with a man who can no longer speak for himself? When Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha stands before the High Court in Pretoria, is he defending Zambia’s honour or putting on display the pettiness that has haunted Edgar Lungu from State House to the grave?
Did the framers of Article 177(5)(c) ever envision that it could be twisted into a legal leash for chasing a coffin across borders, instead of upholding dignity at home?
In whose name is Mr. Kabesha pursuing this legal battle — on behalf of the Zambian people, or to serve the interests of a President who appears so unsettled by his predecessor’s legacy that even the details of his burial must be tightly controlled?
Under South African law, the dead belong to the family first, not to a foreign flag or the fragile pride of an insecure administration. The Constitution of South Africa, local statutes, and common law fiercely protect a family’s right to mourn and bury their own, free from foreign executive orders. So, does this courtroom adventure respect the sovereignty of another nation or make Zambia look like a meddling neighbour with no respect for borders?
If Pretoria’s High Court dismisses this desperate interdict, as legal precedent strongly suggests it might, will Kabesha return home victorious — or will he drag back a public embarrassment that confirms what many Zambians quietly whisper: that this government cannot separate personal grudges from official duty?
Politically, what does this gamble achieve? Each foreign affidavit fuels sympathy for Lungu’s family, turns his burial into an act of defiance, and shines a global spotlight on how far the ruling party is willing to go to police a dead man’s legacy. Who benefits from that spectacle except the opposition and restless voters?
And where does this leave a grieving family forced to explain to foreign judges why they wish to bury their father in peace, far from the theatre of Zambian politics that stalked him to his last breath? Is it not a shame that the same government which denied him medical help now wants to command his funeral with legal threats abroad?
So, Mr. Kabesha, when the dust settles and the Pretoria court has spoken, who will bury the consequences of this political miscalculation? And will your government survive the anger of a nation that sees power games being played over a man’s grave? What exactly are you up to?
The government’s decision to request the repatriation of the remains of the late President Edgar Chagwa Lungu to Zambia for a respectful National Burial deserves commendation and support. Despite the political rift between President Hakainde Hichilema and former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu, it is important to recognize that former President Lungu was not an ordinary individual but a significant national figure who should not be laid to rest like an average person.
The reality is that the PF political party, along with PF associates and the Lungu family, is fully aware that the return of the late former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu to active politics had implications for his entitlements as a former president.
Moreover, his re-engagement in active politics and the statements he made were not befitting of a Statesman. Those who encouraged him to return to active politics did so for their own selfish motives, aiming to exploit him for their political agendas and to gain from his resources. Conversely, the passing of former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu was perceived as a chance for the PF to undermine the President by issuing unnecessary directives and claims.
The turmoil surrounding the funeral and the postponed burial of the late former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu should not be attributed to President Hakainde Hichilema and the UPND government; rather, it should be directed at the PF, who sought to leverage the death of former President Lungu to garner public sympathy with the intent of discrediting President Hakainde Hichilema. The reality is that PF propaganda and deceit are the foundation of malicious schemes, and disgrace awaits the PF and Makebi Zulu.