By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Gauteng High Court in Pretoria has ruled that the funeral service of former Zambian president Edgar Lungu should not to go ahead as planned.
The Zambian government has filed an urgent case in a South African court seeking to stop the burial of Lungu, until the dispute is resolved.
Judge Aubrey Ledwaba handed the ruling pending an urgent court application.
Ledwaba said, that the funeral would not go ahead following an “agreement between the parties” however it appears that any funeral won’t happen until August at the earliest.
Ledwaba gave Zambian attorney general Mulilo D Kabesha until 4 July to submit his “amended notice of motion” in support of Lungu’s repatriation to Zambia. His family has until 11 July to file their opposing papers.
“This matter will be heard as a special motion on the 4th of August 2025,” the court said. The costs of the urgent application will be determined then.
This is the latest twist in a row between the government and Lungu’s family over his burial, after the family opted for a private ceremony in South Africa, rather than a full state funeral at home.
The dispute follows a long-standing feud between Lungu and his successor, President Hakainde Hichilema, with Lungu’s family saying he had indicated that Hichilema should not attend his funeral.
Following Lungu’s death in South Africa aged 68, the family wanted to be in charge of the funeral arrangements, including the repatriation of his body, but the Zambian authorities sought to take control.
The government and his family later agreed he would have a state funeral before relations broke down over the precise arrangements, prompting the family to opt for a burial in South Africa.
Hichilema has since argued that Lungu, as a former president, “belongs to the nation of Zambia” and should be buried in the country.
The current row over Lungu’s burial underscores the tense relationship between him and his successor, which played out in life and continues even in death.
When Lungu was president, Hichilema was locked up for over 100 days on treason charges after Hichilema’s motorcade allegedly refused to give way for him.