Government has welcomed the Constitutional Court of South Africa’s ruling on the application regarding the repatriation and burial of late President Edgar Lungu’s remains in Zambia.
Secretary to the Cabinet, Patrick Kangwa, said in a statement made available to ZANIS that government respects the court’s decision and remains committed to working with the Lungu family to reach an arrangement that considers their wishes, while upholding the rights of the state.
“The Government of the Republic of Zambia has taken note of the Constitutional Court of South Africa’s ruling concerning the burial of the Sixth President, Dr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu. On behalf of the government, we want to thank the court for its timely consideration of the matter,” Mr Kangwa stated.
He expressed gratitude to Zambians for their understanding during the impasse and for avoiding inflammatory comments.
Mr Kangwa urged citizens to keep the Lungu family in their prayers as the country continues to mourn the former President.
He emphasized that in keeping with the stature of the high office, government’s wish is for the late President to be accorded a dignified funeral.
The statement follows the South African Constitutional Court’s dismissal earlier today of an application by the Lungu family to appeal against the Gauteng High Court ruling that ordered the repatriation of the former President’s remains to Zambia.
According to the order contained in a statement from the Constitutional Court Acting Registrar Dumisani Mathiba, to the concerned parties, the Constitutional Court has considered the application for leave to appeal directly to it and has concluded that no case has been made out for a direct appeal, and that leave to appeal must be refused.
“The Constitutional Court has considered the application for leave to appeal directly to it and has concluded that no case has been made out for a direct appeal. Consequently, leave to appeal must be refused,” read the court order.
President Lungu died in South Africa on June 5, 2025 after an illness.
On 17th August 2025, the Gauteng High Court ruled that the remains of the former president be repatriated to Zambia for a state funeral.
However, the Lungu family applied for leave to appeal to the Constitutional Court.
Just stop informing us until a final decision is made. We are tired. Let’s move on please.
You handled this shockingly from day one so dont try and explicate in four favuor
Remember what goes around comes around
Can’t we see court ruling one after the other as
This should give us some direction.