Latest news with #Lusaka
Washington Post
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
Zambia's ex-President Lungu will be buried in South Africa due to family's feud with Zambia
LUSAKA, Zambia — Former Zambian President Edgar Lungu will be buried in South Africa instead of his homeland because of a disagreement between his family and Zambia's government over his funeral. Lungu died from an undisclosed illness at a hospital in South Africa early this month and the process to repatriate his body for burial in Zambia has been marred by a bitter feud between his family and the current Zambian government. It included the family's demand that Lungu's political rival and current President Hakainde Hichilema should not attend his funeral. The spokesperson and lawyer for the Lungu family, Makebi Zulu, said the decision to bury him in South Africa is 'in accordance with the family's wishes for a private ceremony.' 'We would especially like to extend our sincere appreciation to the Government of the Republic of South Africa for their respectful support and for honoring the family's decision to hold a private funeral and burial here in South Africa,' Zulu said. On Thursday, Hichilema, in a televised address to the nation, canceled the 16-day national mourning that he had declared earlier. 'Our country cannot afford a state of indefinite mourning,' he said. 'We have done everything possible to engage the family of our departed sixth Republican President, and we have reached a point where a clear decision has to be made.' Hichilema also apologized to the the South African government for the inconvenience. Lungu, 68, had ruled the southern African country from 2015 to 2021, when he lost power to Hichilema. He remained an influential figure in the Zambian politics ahead of elections scheduled for next year. Lungu and Hichilema were bitter rivals. Their conflict culminated in Hichilema's imprisonment in 2017, when Lungu was president. Hichilema was accused of treason after his motorcade failed to give way to Lungu's presidential convoy. Last year, Lungu accused Hichilema's government of using police to harass him and restrict his movements. His family also said the government had initially prevented him from traveling to South Africa for treatment, a charge the government denied.
Associated Press
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Associated Press
Zambia's ex-President Lungu will be buried in South Africa due to family's feud with Zambia
LUSAKA, Zambia (AP) — Former Zambian President Edgar Lungu will be buried in South Africa instead of his homeland because of a disagreement between his family and Zambia's government over his funeral. Lungu died from an undisclosed illness at a hospital in South Africa early this month and the process to repatriate his body for burial in Zambia has been marred by a bitter feud between his family and the current Zambian government. It included the family's demand that Lungu's political rival and current President Hakainde Hichilema should not attend his funeral. The spokesperson and lawyer for the Lungu family, Makebi Zulu, said the decision to bury him in South Africa is 'in accordance with the family's wishes for a private ceremony.' 'We would especially like to extend our sincere appreciation to the Government of the Republic of South Africa for their respectful support and for honoring the family's decision to hold a private funeral and burial here in South Africa,' Zulu said. On Thursday, Hichilema, in a televised address to the nation, canceled the 16-day national mourning that he had declared earlier. 'Our country cannot afford a state of indefinite mourning,' he said. 'We have done everything possible to engage the family of our departed sixth Republican President, and we have reached a point where a clear decision has to be made.' Hichilema also apologized to the the South African government for the inconvenience. Lungu, 68, had ruled the southern African country from 2015 to 2021, when he lost power to Hichilema. He remained an influential figure in the Zambian politics ahead of elections scheduled for next year. Lungu and Hichilema were bitter rivals. Their conflict culminated in Hichilema's imprisonment in 2017, when Lungu was president. Hichilema was accused of treason after his motorcade failed to give way to Lungu's presidential convoy. Last year, Lungu accused Hichilema's government of using police to harass him and restrict his movements. His family also said the government had initially prevented him from traveling to South Africa for treatment, a charge the government denied.
BBC News
9 hours ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Edgar Lungu: Zambian ex-president's burial in doubt after Hakainde Hichilema cancels mourning
Zambia's President Hakainde Hichilema has abruptly ended the national mourning period of former President Edgar Lungu in an escalating stand-off between the family and the authorities about his burial plans. It follows the last-minute cancellation of the return of Lungu's body from South Africa by his family on Wednesday, leaving the country uncertain about when and where the former leader will be his address on Thursday evening, President Hakainde Hichilema announced an immediate end to the mourning period, saying the country needed to "resume normal life". "The government has done everything possible to engage with the family of our departed sixth president," said Hichilema. The national mourning period initially ran from 8 to 14 June but was later extended until 23 June, with flags flying at half-mast and radio stations playing solemn music. The extension followed a meeting between government officials and Lungu's family in an attempt to resolve the deadlock over his funeral arrangements had been finalised and his remains were due to be flown back home on Wednesday on a private charter plane. Funeral row causes chaos for mourners of Zambia's ex-presidentPresident Hichilema and senior officials had been prepared to receive the coffin with full military honours, and plans were set for the body to lie in state at Lungu's residence before a funeral this Sunday and burial the following Lungu's family on Wednesday blocked the repatriation of Lungu's remains, saying the government had reneged on its agreement over the funeral family said it hoped that the former president's body would be repatriated "some day" and buried in government expressed regret over the family's action and issued an apology to the South African government and military, who had prepared for the handover."It is unfortunate that their efforts were in vain," Hichilema said. He added that Lungu, being a former president, "belongs to the nation of Zambia" and his body should therefore "be buried in Zambia with full honours, and not in any other nation".Hichilema said his government had "reached a point where a clear decision has to be made," adding that the country "cannot afford a state of indefinite mourning". The opposition Patriotic Front (PF), the party Lungu led until his death, has backed the family's position."The government has turned a solemn occasion into a political game," said PF acting president Given Lubinda. "This is not how we treat a former head of state."Civil society groups have called for an urgent resolution of the matter, with a section of religious leaders saying the stand-off was "hurting the dignity of our country"."We appeal for humility, dialogue, and a resolution that honours the memory of the former president while keeping the nation united," said Emmanuel Chikoya, head of the Council of Churches in government has called for calm and reaffirmed its willingness to continue dialogue with the family over the who led Zambia from 2015 to 2021, died earlier this month in South Africa where he was receiving treatment for an undisclosed six years as head of state, Lungu lost the 2021 election to Hichilema by a large margin. He stepped back from politics but later returned to the had ambitions to vie for the presidency again but at the end of last year the Constitutional Court barred him from running, ruling that he had already served the maximum two terms allowed by his disqualification from the presidential election, he remained hugely influential in Zambian politics and did not hold back in his criticism of his reporting by Wycliffe Muia More BBC stories from Zambia: 'My son is a drug addict, please help' - the actor breaking a Zambian tabooAn ancient writing system confounding myths about AfricaZambia president orders ministers to stop sleeping in cabinet Go to for more news from the African us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica
The Guardian
a day ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Ordinary Zambians lose out twice: to global looting and local corruption
Your editorial (The Guardian view on Zambia's Trumpian predicament: US aid cuts are dwarfed by a far bigger heist, 10 January) highlights research by Prof Andrew Fischer, and the exploitation of Zambia's commodity resources via illicit financial schemes. Many Zambians have raised the issue of this looting for years, but have met coordinated resistance. Consequently, Zambia's treasury loses billions of dollars in revenue. These losses are driven by well-known multinationals working in concert with certain insiders close to the Zambian state. Your editorial also says: 'The US decision to cut $50m a year in aid to Zambia … is dreadful, and the reason given, corruption, rings hollow.' Alas, I disagree and wish to place this in context. The aid cut followed large-scale theft of US-donated medical supplies by individuals connected to and within the Zambian state. Even before Donald Trump assumed office, Michael Gonzales, the US ambassador, confronted Zambian authorities about this. US officials engaged in 33 meetings with senior members of the Zambian government and officers from the Zambia police service and other law enforcement agencies. US officials urged the Zambians to take action to ensure medicines reached the country's poorest citizens. The president's inner circle ignored the warnings, ultimately leading to the aid cut. The Zambian government's reaction was to dismiss these legitimate concerns, saying diplomats should stay out of Zambia's internal affairs. This response is inadequate, as the issues go beyond mere bureaucratic inefficiency and touch on profound state corruption. The government's refusal to confront this reality is disappointing and has led to more suffering, where ordinary people who benefited from this aid will be most MwambaZambia's high commissioner to South Africa (2015-19) As a Zambian and UK citizen, I am both enraged and heartbroken by Prof Andrew Fischer's research exposing the systematic plunder of my country's wealth. While Donald Trump cuts our aid, citing 'corruption', the real thieves operate with complete impunity under the guise of legitimate business. The figures are devastating: $5bn extracted in 2021 alone. This isn't corruption in the traditional sense, it's legalised theft orchestrated by multinational corporations that exploit our resources while leaving us in poverty. How can we be called corrupt when the very system designed to 'help' us facilitates our exploitation? I think of my fellow Zambians struggling to access basic healthcare, education and clean water while billions flow to Swiss bank accounts. We sit on some of the world's most valuable mineral deposits, yet we're drowning in debt. This isn't coincidence – it's by design. Foreign direct investment is often foreign direct extraction in disguise. Companies like Glencore and First Quantum Minerals have treated Zambia like a cash machine, using complex financial structures to strip our wealth while paying minimal taxes. When confronted, they simply leave or settle for pennies in the pound. This global economic architecture, which enables legal plunder, must be challenged. African countries need new models of resource governance that prioritise our people over foreign shareholders. We need transparency requirements exposing these shadowy financial flows, progressive taxation capturing fair value from our resources, and regional cooperation preventing companies from playing us against each other. The west's moralising about corruption while facilitating this systematic theft is breathtaking hypocrisy. Until the international community addresses the structural violence of this extractive system, their aid will remain what it truly is – a drop in the ocean compared with the torrent of wealth flowing out of MulaishoLondon
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Funeral standoff halts repatriation of former Zambian president's body
LUSAKA, Zambia (AP) — The family of former Zambian President Edgar Lungu delayed the repatriation of his body from South Africa for a second time Wednesday in a feud with the country's current leader over the details of the funeral. The family's lawyer said that they would not bring Lungu's body home as planned on Wednesday because they don't want President Hakainde Hichilema to attend Lungu's funeral. Lungu and Hichilema were bitter political rivals. Lungu, who was 68, died in a South African hospital of an undisclosed illness on June 5 and was meant to be honored with a state funeral, which Hichilema was due to preside over. Lungu family lawyer Makebi Zulu said it was Lungu's wishes that Hichilema "should not be anywhere near" his body when he is buried. 'It is our hope that someday his remains will be repatriated back home and buried,' Zulu said. Lungu's body was initially due to be repatriated last weekend following seven days of national mourning, but the family didn't allow that because of disagreements over the funeral program. His body was then due to return home to the southern Africa country this week for a procession ahead of a rescheduled state funeral on Monday. Hichilema has offered his condolences to the family and said it should be a time for the country to show unity. Information Minister and government spokesperson Cornelius Mweetwa said the government 'remains hopeful' that the issue will be resolved. Lungu beat Hichilema in a 2016 election. Hichilema was then imprisoned for four months in 2017 and accused of treason by Lungu's government for his motorcade not giving way to Lungu's on a road. Their rivalry continued in a 2021 presidential election, which was won by Hichilema. Last year, Lungu, who remained influential in politics, accused Hichilema's government of using the police to harass him and restrict his movements. His family also said the government initially prevented him from traveling to South Africa for treatment, a charge the government denied. ___ AP Africa news:
