Today, the Minister of Information and Media and Chief Government Spokesperson Hon. Cornelius Mweetwa MP held a press briefing on Government position concerning the death of the former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu
Below are the highlights:
✅ Government is actively engaging with the family of the late former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu in order to ensure that protocols and actions to be taken are in line and in sync with that of family.
✅ This is to ensure that the late President gets a befitting and dignified send-off.
✅ It is regrettable that some leaders in the Patriotic Front are turning the funeral into a political fiesta making it a platform for political squabbles and finger pointing.
✅ The Patriotic Front leaders are using the death of the former President as a political springboard in order to gain political relevance.
✅ Having done or not done one or the other thing is now not the right thing to do adding that all responsible leaders presently are called to provide leadership to the country in line with our established norms and practices as a christian nation.
ALLEGATIONS THAT FORMER PRESIDENT EDGAR LUNGU WOULD NOT HAVE DIED IF HE WAS NOT DELAYED TO BE EVACUATED FOR MEDICAL ATTENTION ABROAD
✅ Indicated that at no time did Government place a travel moratorium or ban on former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu.
✅ It is an absurdity that the Patriotic Front can admit that the former President was having a medical condition for a while yet when Information and Media Permanent Secretary Thabo Kawana indicated to the nation that he was aware that the former President had a condition and that he was undergoing chemotherapy, legal process were planned against him.
ALLEGATIONS THAT GOVERNMENT WITHDREW ENTITLEMENTS FOR THE FORMER PRESIDENT
✅ Indicated that at no time did Government withdraw any entitlements that were properly accruing to the late former President Edgar Lungu.
✅ Noted that it is grossly unfortunate that some leaders can lie through their teeth about Government withdrawing entitlements of the late former President Edgar Lungu.
✅ Stated that when former President Edgar Lungu decided to retire from active politics,he put in writing to the Secretary to Cabinet indicating that particular move and from that date therefore the benefits and entitlements that the law confers to him were given to him.
✅ However, according to chapter 15 section 5 of the laws of zambia which stipulates that a former president who retires from active politics and decides to come back to active politics will have their benefits accruing to them as former head of the republic of Zambia be forfeited.
✅ In this regard, the former President enjoyed all the benefits until the time he decided to go back to active politics at the insistence of some of his supporters within the Patriotic Front.
✅ It is at that time that the law kicked in to withdraw those entitlements that the law confers to a former president.
✅The Former late President is the first former president who had his immunity not tempered with or lifted.
✅ In this regard, President Hakainde Hichilema is the first serving President of Zambia not to lift the immunity or remove the presidential immunity of his predecessor.
✅ Meanwhile. the Minister indicated that allegations of possible poisoning without prejudice to possible findings has got nothing to do whatsoever with the government of the Republic of Zambia.
✅ Dismissed allegations that Zambian authorities and or agents stormed the medical facility in South Africa demanding to repatriate the body of former President Edgar Lungu.
✅ Indicated that if such an occurrence took place, Government is not aware and did not give blessings to anyone.
✅ Allegations by the Patriotic Front are highly misplaced and misrepresenting the true Zambian way of handling grievances.
✅ The Minister has since encouraged local and international media not to take a number of what leaders from the PF are saying as the actual truth.
✅ We cannot therefore,entertain a situation where statements are made in order to promote anarchy in the nation.
✅ The Chief Government Spokesperson has since called upon all citizens to remain calm and give former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu a befitting dignified send-off.
#stayinformed
#MayHisSoulRestInPeace
Well, it was not due to lack of trying. ECL was just a lot smarter than Hakainde. He was also a much better man. RIP.
VOTE FOR CHANGE IN 2026.
The reason being RB after lungu lost brokered a peaceful handover of power with one specific condition that Lungus immunity will not be lifted and he won’t be arrested for any crimes committed while in office.