As the ongoing cross-border dispute over the burial of the late former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu, his widow, Esther Lungu, has disclosed that one of his final wishes was that President Hakainde Hichilema neither attend his funeral nor view his body.
The revelations were made in an affidavit filed before the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria, South Africa, as the legal battle intensifies between the Lungu family and the Zambian government, which is seeking to repatriate the former Head of State’s remains for a state burial in line with national tradition.
“During the late former President Lungu’s time in South Africa, he was open and consistent in expressing his wish that, upon his death, the current President should be nowhere,” the affidavit reads. “He expressly said Mr. Hichilema must not be allowed to participate in or see his body.”
Esther Lungu further claimed her husband fled Zambia in January 2025 under genuine fear of persecution, not merely for medical treatment. She alleged that President Lungu feared politically motivated neglect in Zambian healthcare institutions and ongoing harassment by the state. He was diagnosed in South Africa with terminal oesophageal cancer, which doctors believed could have been more effectively treated had he been treated ealier.
She argues that her husband died a private citizen, stripped of all former president benefits since 2023, and that the Former Presidents’ Benefits Act—under which the state claims burial authority—no longer applied to him at the time of his death.
“There is no testament, will, or legal basis for the State to interfere with the burial. That responsibility rests with his family, and his wish was to be buried in South Africa,” she stated.
Mrs. Lungu also accused the government of waging a prolonged campaign of political retaliation, referencing the 2017 arrest of President Hichilema during Lungu’s administration as a likely catalyst for what she termed state-orchestrated retribution—including arrests of family members and property seizures.
As evidence, she submitted videos and podcast interviews in which the late president expressed deep mistrust of the Hichilema-led government. In one recorded statement, he reportedly said: “One who torments another in life must not preside over the funeral in death.”
The Zambian government, through Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha, has maintained that President Lungu’s status as a former Head of State legally obligates the nation to honour him with a state funeral and burial, as per constitutional and legislative requirements.
The Attorney General has petitioned the Pretoria High Court to issue an order for the repatriation of the body to Zambia, where government insists a state burial at the Embassy Park Presidential Burial Site is the rightful course.
The former First Lady’s claims have stirred public debate, drawing a reflective response from governance activist Laura Miti, who challenged the moral framing of the late president’s final sentiments.
“My question to Madam Esther is—did President Lungu also speak about the terrible treatment he himself had dished out to HH?” Miti posted on social media.
She went on to question whether forgiveness was ever part of the conversation in the final days of the former president’s life.
“Did she, at all, try to save her husband from dying with anger and half-truths?”
The matter, which has placed Zambia on the global spotlight, is now before the Gauteng High Court, with a ruling on the repatriation request expected on 4 August 2025. In the meantime, both sides remain at a legal and moral impasse, with national unity and tradition hanging in the balance.
To start with ,let’s all remember how the PF party persecuted Rupiah Bwezani Banda after taking power .This cycle of bitterness and retribution must be put to an end.
In any funeral all over the world, whether the deceased was a President or an ordinary person, the family is the final authority. Period
Esther Lungu’s statement over her late husband’s is in fact invalid since it was put in writing. And on the other he had chosen to run for office which he won. He became a state property. NATION FUNERAL.
So the wife knew that Edgar was dying, was it assisted suicide?
How did Edgar know that he will die earlier than HH.
I pray Edgar is alive, and writing a book.
If that was his last wish so be it Let the family bury him where they wish and perhaps a plaque can be put at rememberance park at some stage
One must bear in mind the bitterness that both had for each other
this is not one sided
Frankly speaking people in Zambia have moved on,we don’t talk about it in pubs, clubs not even homes. So let the lungs do what they want to do. We give them our blessings. Only people who are out of Zambia keep on talking about this
Please don’t entertain people like Laura Miti who are adding fuel to flames. If ECL mistreated HH, we expect HH who happens to be we are a told a church elder to castogate Laura.
If the issue is that one was arrested 15 times and was just revenging. Being arrested 15 times may just mean you are a problem. We are 20 million Zambians, why are we not arrested 15 times ourselves
# Respect the Family wishes
He never distances himself from such utterances of that woman. I think they are a york of a league. Don’t you remember she also advocated that the mourners be forcefully removed from the secretariat.
church elders are 2 a penny so are degrees gifted to presidents
GRZ should go a head and start investigating the late Mr lungu’s suspected wealth…….
If Mrs lungu is being used as a weapon to bitterness and hatred ……….
, let GRZ start manoeuvres to investigate her late husband and publicise the findings………
It won’t end well for the lungus
FWD2031
This joker is back again attacking the Lungus. Who ever is paying you to post crap needs to be investigated
Neither will it end well for HH
Who do you think started this way back, If you dont think this will put a stain on his legacy you sorely mistaken, Remember this was between two people, and no one knows what went on or was said between them, so stop apportioning blame on the deceased,
You keep on about the courts, What Courts ?? is the verdict not already set in stone ??
I say lets see what 2026 brings forth
We still waiting for sense to prevail and a challenger put forward
Anti Jokes Unit
There is the coward inadequate man with multiple aliases…….
If the lungus want to decampain the president over corpse………
The president’s supporters have the right to defend the president ………
We are saying the late president was a suspect thief, let GRZ start investigating his wealth, the public have the right to know……….
What are you afraid of ????
Intop of that , we are saying……..
the corpse of the late president, nor his family , nor HH is bigger than the democratic republic of Zambia
FWD2031
Tikki
You are still hoping for 2026 ???
Try in 2041
In 2931 HH will be advisor to the UPND GRZ until 2041…….
FWD2041
The Lungs are just very bitter because Thier horse lost.When Lungu gambled his presidential benefits he was sure he was going to win the 2026 elections and send HH back to jail.So, he called himself a serpent,called his presidential benefits peanuts and then started jogging . Now he has lost and pretending to be an innocent victim when he had bad intentions for HH
The economy is on its knees and you rush to court over a burial of a person, you never even checked on for 6 months in a foreign country when he was sick. And there is not even a constitutional provision giving you the state powers over the family wishes. Sort out the bread and butter issues, we have 19 hours of loadshedding. Wake up
As long as they keep earning their fat salaries there will be no change just yes Sir yes Sir
This GRZ has brought a new unwelcomed dimension to our Zambian polotics
So sad
Where is the economy on its knees ????
Only in pockets of PF and tonse alliance partners now that kasaka kandalama is no more……….
The rest of the population know the economy is out of the PF induced ICU and is now breathing on its own…….
FWD2031
Nkhani ya malilo, ni nkhani ya banja. Boma siifunika no ngenamo. Maybe this language may be understood
The best the government should have done instead of removing the minister of foreign affairs, was to withdraw the entire case and let go. But they wish to go all the way through the lengthy burial delays and embarrassing process. Perhaps our president is enjoying all this.
He lied to us that he is in constant private touch and dialogue with the bereaved family. I thought the court process ideally did away with this process until the matter is legally exhausted. If he was not lying, where is proof of communication? In fact the exact opposite of the intended purpose is true. In spite of a closure, we are mourning in perpetuity.
His unchristian words! His unchristian wishes, his non-reconciliatory words, his unforgiving words, his sinful wishes, and all evil attributes of ECL revealed, by the widow. Was lungu serious when declaring the day of national prayer and reconciliation? Or it was jemason or kachasu at work?
Lots of people walk around wearing masks and /or are Pharisees .Learn and be wise from this.
And let me tell you both are 2 peas in a pod except one is a little more diplomatic
Remember still waters run deep
What was meant by Jesus Christ when he said,”Let the dead bury themselves?” But our tradition says, “Abafwa tabaishika.” Meaning, the dead don’t burry themselves at all.
@ AWEE
You read that verse BUT you didn’t understand it.
Answer my question below.
Did Jesus bury himself????
Jesus actually meant the spiritually dead.
For Laura Miti if she wasn’t a known supporter of HH I would respect her but iam sorry on this one she is offside.she can continue licking ass and leave the Lungu family mourn and bury ECL according to his wish
We are saying……..
The corpse of ECL , HH , the lungu family……..
None of them is bigger than the Democratic republic of Zambia……….
While we respect the family and their wishes…….
The interests of the county must come first………what ever the outcome or the wishes of the late ECL
The late ECL was not a simple normal citizen, having being president…….
We say this again , this bitterness has its roots in GRZ asking for recites or money trails for the billions the lungu family have………
FWD2041
GRZ and HH will be embarrassed by the SA court. Given the circumstances it quite clear that any free court will rule in favour of the family. Why fight a battle you will not win?
The fight in court purely to save the image of HH
The battle and stubbourness is not with the zambian people but purely HH
HH should sort this out and his GRZ must stop using us in their hard uncomproming attitude
Iwe,ust sit down and wait for the court ruling
Let them bury him in SA after all as a thief he doesn’t deserve space at embassy park. But let the state verify that indeed it is lungu who is being buried and not an imposter. Even if they dont want HH to see the body somebody else on behalf of the state needs to be given access to the body prior to burial for authentification since he was a zambian citizen and therefore the state of zambia has to verify that it is indeed one of its citizens who has died and buried in SA.
There’s no need to have human rights activists in Zambia, they all wear political lenses. Sometimes it’s better to keep silent and let those with wisdom speak.
You are right however where do you find wisdom in our makeup as it’s politically tainted