FAMILY REVEALS LATE FORMER PRESIDENT EDGAR LUNGU WANTED PRESIDENT HICHILEMA TO STAY AWAY FROM HIS FUNERAL
By Michael Kaluba
The family of late former president Edgar Lungu has revealed that one of his final wishes was for president Hakainde Hichilema to stay away from his funeral and refrain from mourning him.
Family Spokesperson Makebi Zulu says the late president, who died last Thursday in South Africa, explicitly instructed that his mortal remains be conveyed by his family as a private citizen, without the Zambian government involvement.
Mr. Zulu says several engagements have taken place between the family and the government, with the first led by Foreign Affairs Minister Mulambo Haimbe, and another by former Vice President Enock Kavindele and Ambassador Lesly Mbula, in the presence of the current Secretary to the Cabinet, Patrick Kangwa.
He says the family is dismayed by government’s attempts to unilaterally convey the remains of president Lungu without their involvement, further accusing the state of shifting from what was initially agreed upon, instead suggesting that the family has no say in how the late president is mourned or how his remains are handled.
In a livestream from South Africa, the Lungu family representative attributes the request for president Hichilema to stay away from the funeral, to reasons that are allegedly common cause, while emphasizing that matters of conscience for both the deceased and the family should not be sacrificed at the altar of convenience.
Mr. Zulu says the family acknowledges the significance of national mourning, but has insisted that their rights must be balanced with the state’s ceremonial obligations while the incumbent president must stay away.
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