By Morgan Phiri.
A CASKET HELD HOSTAGE: NATIONAL MOURNING BEING TURNED INTO MANIPULATION.
Right now, as Zambia mourns the passing of its Sixth Republican President, something shameful is unfolding before our eyes. What should be a moment of unity, reflection, and national dignity has instead become a theatre of political bitterness, orchestrated by a desperate opposition that cannot tell the difference between power and pettiness.
The Patriotic Front, through lawyer Makebi Zulu, has publicly barred President Hakainde Hichilema from attending the funeral of Edgar Chagwa Lungu. Their words are not just cold they are chilling:
“President Hakainde Hichilema should not be anywhere near the body… for reasons that have since become common cause.”
What reasons? None have been honestly stated. But the message is clear: the PF would rather keep the casket than open the door to national healing. This is not grief. This is manipulation. And Zambia is watching.
Instead of honouring their own leader with grace, PF has decided to weaponize his death, dragging his grieving widow and children into a storm of bitterness. The Lungu family deserves peace, silence, and space to mourn. What they’re getting is scripts, microphones, and cameras. It’s cruel. It’s calculated. And it’s playing out in real time.
On the other hand, the UPND has so far exercised noticeable restraint. Secretary General Batuke Imenda advised members not to comment and they haven’t. That discipline matters. President Hichilema has maintained a composed silence despite provocation, and that silence speaks volumes. It reflects emotional control, institutional respect, and the understanding that not every battle is fought with words.
The contrast is jarring. While some are performing for headlines, others have chosen dignity. This isn’t about politics. It’s about national responsibility. When people are grieving, leaders are expected to lead by example to unite, not divide.
An opportunity to strengthen our democracy has been rejected by a small group of cadres trying to undermine our national motto, One Zambia, One Nation.
Let’s be brutally honest. What we’re witnessing isn’t just a reaction to death it’s a performance built on resentment. It’s an attempt to provoke chaos and stir public anger.
Instead what we have seen is a nation, which has been mourning in quiet dignity, now increasingly ready to move on.
Instead what we have seen is a nation, which has been mourning in quiet dignity, now increasingly ready to move on.