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The South African
4 days ago
- Politics
- The South African
Dispute over Edgar Lungu's body delays funeral plans
The family of Zambia's former President Edgar Lungu has decided to delay the return of his body from South Africa, accusing the government of failing to honour crucial funeral arrangements. Lungu's remains were expected to arrive back in Zambia on Wednesday via a private charter flight, following several days of tense discussions between the family and authorities. Lungu's family has since called off the plan, expressing deep mistrust in the government's commitment to the agreed terms. Speaking during a media briefing, the family spokesperson, Makebi Zulu, said that the mortal remains of President Edgar Chagwa Lungu will not return today (on Wednesaday). 'We had agreed that the mortal remains of President Edgar Chagwa Lungu would be repatriated today, the 18 June, 2025, and would lie in state at his official residence in Chifwema,' Zulu said. 'However, the family has noted with regret attempts to subvert the spirit of this agreement.' According to Zulu, two major developments led to the family's decision. On 16 June, the Road Development Agency (RDA) announced roadworks along the funeral route from Crossroads to Chifwema, without informing the family. Although the repairs were halted after complaints, Zulu said the move went against what had been agreed. Then, on 17 June, Cabinet Secretary Patrick Kangwa released a statement limiting public access to the airport where Lungu's body was to arrive again, without consulting the family. To make things worse, a new government schedule showed President Hichilema leading the reception and a church service, directly opposing Lungu's explicit wish that Hichilema not be involved in his funeral. 'For these reasons, the family finds it difficult to trust that the government will adhere to the agreement,' Zulu said. 'Sadly, we have resolved that the mortal remains of President Edgar Chagwa Lungu will not return home today. 'We hope that someday his remains will be repatriated and buried.' Edgar Lungu died in South Africa earlier this month while receiving medical care. Zambia is now observing 16 days of national mourning. His family claims Lungu requested that President Hichilema stay away from his body. However, the two sides struck a deal allowing Hichilema to oversee the state funeral on Sunday. Lungu lost to Hichilema in the 2021 election after six years in power. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Image shows Zambian truck with mining equipment, not Kenyan IDs sent to Somalia
'First shipment of Kenyan IDs and Passports headed for Mogadishu after the lifting of vetting and background check requirements,' reads an X post published on February 5, 2025, and reposted over 800 times. The image accompanying the claim shows a yellow and white freight truck carrying a large load. Ruto signed a decree on February 5, 2025, abolishing discriminatory ID vetting requirements for the inhabitants of border counties in Northern Kenya, during a four-day tour in the region (archived here). Ethnic Somalis and refugees who fled Somalia during the civil war in 1991 make up most of the population in the northeastern part of Kenya, which borders Somalia to the east. The recent directive means that all Kenyan citizens can now register for national IDs without being subjected to extra scrutiny, regardless of their ethnic or religious background. The 60-year-old vetting requirement for issuing IDs and birth certificates in the region had been adopted as a security measure following the effects of the 1960s Shifta war (archived here and here). The development has been viewed by critics as a political strategy by Ruto to secure the northeastern voting bloc ahead of the 2027 general elections (archived here). During his tour, Ruto also opened Kenya's 10th immigration office in Garissa County to ease the process of acquiring passports for Northern Kenya residents (archived here). The post shared on X claiming to show identification documents being transported to Somalia following the halting of ID vetting in northern Kenya is, however, false. AFP Fact Check conducted reverse image searches and found that the photo was published in an article by Zambia Mining on November 27, 2024 (archived here). According to the publication, the image shows a cold box unit that was successfully delivered to Zambia's Kansanshi Mine in Solwezi town. Zambia's Road Development Agency had earlier published the image on Facebook, in an update on the movement of the mining equipment (archived here). The 64-metre-long piece of equipment, which weighed 154 metric tonnes, was one of the largest loads to travel on Zambian roads, according to Zambian news site Lusaka Times (archived here).
AFP
21-03-2025
- Politics
- AFP
Image shows Zambian truck with mining equipment, not Kenyan IDs sent to Somalia
In February 2025, Kenyan President William Ruto signed a proclamation to officially abolish arduous identification card vetting requirements for residents of the northeastern part of the country. The region is predominantly inhabited by ethnic Somalis and Somali refugees. Following the recent development, a post shared on X claimed to show a truck transporting Kenyan IDs and passports to Somalia's capital Mogadishu. The claim is false; the image shows a cold box unit being delivered to a mine in Zambia in 2024. 'First shipment of Kenyan IDs and Passports headed for Mogadishu after the lifting of vetting and background check requirements,' reads an X post published on February 5, 2025, and reposted over 800 times. Image Screenshot of the false post, taken on March 18, 2025 The image accompanying the claim shows a yellow and white freight truck carrying a large load. ID vetting in northeastern Kenya Ruto signed a decree on February 5, 2025, abolishing discriminatory ID vetting requirements for the inhabitants of border counties in Northern Kenya, during a four-day tour in the region (archived here). Ethnic Somalis and refugees who fled Somalia during the civil war in 1991 make up most of the population in the northeastern part of Kenya, which borders Somalia to the east. The recent directive means that all Kenyan citizens can now register for national IDs without being subjected to extra scrutiny, regardless of their ethnic or religious background. The 60-year-old vetting requirement for issuing IDs and birth certificates in the region had been adopted as a security measure following the effects of the 1960s Shifta war (archived here and here). The development has been viewed by critics as a political strategy by Ruto to secure the northeastern voting bloc ahead of the 2027 general elections (archived here). During his tour, Ruto also opened Kenya's 10th immigration office in Garissa County to ease the process of acquiring passports for Northern Kenya residents (archived here). The post shared on X claiming to show identification documents being transported to Somalia following the halting of ID vetting in northern Kenya is, however, false. Zambia cold box unit AFP Fact Check conducted reverse image searches and found that the photo was published in an article by Zambia Mining on November 27, 2024 (archived here). According to the publication, the image shows a cold box unit that was successfully delivered to Zambia's Kansanshi Mine in Solwezi town. Image Screenshot of the Zambia Mining article, taken on March 18, 2025 Zambia's Road Development Agency had earlier published the image on Facebook, in an update on the movement of the mining equipment (archived here). The 64-metre-long piece of equipment, which weighed 154 metric tonnes, was one of the largest loads to travel on Zambian roads, according to Zambian news site Lusaka Times (archived here).
