WHO IS BEHIND THE LUNGU BURIAL IMPASSE? ZAMBIANS DESERVE THE TRUTH
BY Chilufya Kasonde
Zambians continue to watch with growing concern and disappointment the prolonged impasse surrounding the burial of former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu (ECL). What should have been a dignified, unifying national moment has instead turned into an unnecessary standoff between the Government and the Lungu family, with the nation left in the dark as to who is truly dictating the terms of this delay.
It is no longer sufficient for key family representatives, particularly Makebi Zulu and former First Lady Esther Lungu, to remain silent or evasive on this matter. They owe the Zambian people clarity. They know who is influencing the conditions attached to the burial and the continued delay in repatriating the remains of the former Head of State from South Africa.
Public discourse increasingly points to the involvement of Archbishop Alick Banda, who has been repeatedly mentioned as a central figure in the disputed burial arrangements. If true, this raises serious questions about the appropriateness of clerical involvement in matters that are clearly national, political, and constitutional in nature.
Former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu was not merely a private citizen; he served the Republic of Zambia as Head of State. As such, his burial transcends family preference and enters the realm of national responsibility and dignity. Demands allegedly being advanced, such as restricting the sitting President from viewing the body or attending the burial are unprecedented, divisive, and incompatible with Zambia’s traditions of peace, reconciliation, and respect for public office.
No individual, cleric or otherwise, should seek to demonstrate dominance over a democratically elected government by leveraging a national funeral. Zambia is a constitutional democracy governed by law, not by personal or institutional supremacy.
The appeal to Makebi Zulu and Esther Lungu is simple and sincere: re-engage the Government of the Republic of Zambia in good faith. Allow the remains of former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu to be repatriated so that the nation can accord him a befitting burial on Zambian soil, in recognition of his service to the country.
Equally important is the need to keep partisan politics out of mourning. The late President’s body should not become a political tool, nor should grief be weaponised ahead of the 2026 General Election. Such actions would dishonour both the legacy of ECL and the moral foundations of the nation.
Religious leaders, in particular, must exercise restraint and remain faithful to their sacred calling as agents of peace, unity, and moral guidance — not political actors. Zambia has a proud history of church-state cooperation built on mutual respect, not confrontation.
The nation is watching. History is recording. It is time for transparency, humility, and statesmanship to prevail, in death, as in life.- Ilelanga news
Ask the lungu family thugs and their equally thuggish lawyer.
Zambians don’t care for lungu, we care for our families and our well being. Not about a thug family who raped our mother Zambia
Malukula can argue that he was just almost a robot conveying what he was programmed to say, but the fact is that he is human and capable of advising if what he was instructed to say is divisive, he almost became a South African news presenter with his daily announcements some of which really tarnished the reputation of Zambia as a county, to turn around and claim the robotic nature of being a spokes person does not hold especially that he was among those that were in the mediation team with government. So he cannot deny his input to this impasse especially that now he wants to takeover the position of the person he claimed to speak for as spokesperson. He is mixed up in everything that has happened leading us to the current position
From what we see it seems the main culprits are Malukula, Tasila and Alick Banda. These are the devil incarnates. As you can see most of the people in PF have moved on and do want to waste their time on issues that don’t make sense.
The issue is simple, these guys are hoping for resign change , which I doubt whether it will happen in August.