The Editor Zambia
It is becoming increasingly difficult for the Lungu family to escape responsibility for the shameful and prolonged failure to bury Zambia’s sixth President, Edgar Chagwa Lungu, who died on June 5, 2025, at the age of 68.
As of November 13, 2026, one year, five months, and eight days have passed since the former Head of State breathed his last. Yet, in a development that should trouble every well-meaning Zambian, his remains are still unburied. 
What should have been a solemn family and national responsibility has degenerated into an embarrassing political spectacle, with the deceased seemingly caught in the middle of an increasingly bitter political contest.
The most troubling aspect of this saga is the persistent attempt by the Lungu family and its associates to shift the blame onto the Zambian Government, even after Government has finally given them permission to proceed with the burial.
The obvious question is: what exactly is stopping the family from burying their loved one?
For months, the family has presented itself as the victim of government interference, portraying the authorities as the principal obstacle to giving the former President a dignified final resting place.
But now that permission has reportedly been granted, the family must explain why Edgar Lungu remains in a mortuary rather than being laid to rest.
It is time to separate political rhetoric from personal responsibility.
At the centre of this matter are Lungu’s widow, Esther Lungu, and his daughter, Tasila Lungu, who, as immediate family members, have a particularly important responsibility in determining the family’s position on the burial.
They cannot indefinitely hide behind political spokespersons while the country waits for a clear indication that the family genuinely intends to bring this unfortunate chapter to an end.
Equally concerning is the role of family spokesperson Makebi Zulu, whose increasingly prominent political profile has raised legitimate questions about whether the burial dispute has become entangled with ambitions beyond the family’s stated concerns.
A family spokesperson should have facilitated a resolution, not allowing a funeral dispute to become a permanent political campaign platform. The death of a former President should never become a springboard for political advancement.
There is something profoundly disturbing about a situation in which political statements, accusations, and press briefings continue, but the one fundamental responsibility — burying the deceased — remains unfulfilled.
Edgar Lungu was a husband, father, and former Head of State. Whatever political disagreements existed between him and the current administration, his death should have been followed by arrangements that respected his humanity, his family, and the dignity of the Zambian presidency.
His remains should not become an instrument of political bargaining or an enduring symbol around which political grievances are mobilised.
The family must also appreciate that Zambians are entitled to question this extraordinary delay. National sympathy cannot be demanded indefinitely while accountability is avoided.
If the government has granted permission for the burial, the family should demonstrate good faith by announcing a clear burial programme and proceeding without further political theatrics.
Nobody is suggesting that the family should surrender its rights or abandon its grievances. However, no disagreement, however serious, should justify an apparently endless delay in laying a loved one to rest.
The time for accusations has passed. The time for political posturing has passed.
The Lungu family must stop looking for someone else to blame and accept its responsibility.
Edgar Lungu deserves to be buried, his family deserves closure, and Zambia deserves an end to this unfortunate national embarrassment.
