Pretoria, SOUTH AFRICA — The 10-month legal battle over the final resting place of Zambia’s sixth Republican President, Dr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu.
The High Court in Pretoria formally transferred custody of the late leader’s remains to the Zambian Government, ending a protracted dispute with the former President’s family.
Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha SC confirmed the transfer in a statement, noting that the family was unable to proceed with their case before the South African Supreme Court of Appeal.
Okay News reports that the remains have been moved from Two Mountains Burial Services to a facility managed by the South African Government pending repatriation to Lusaka.
Dr. Lungu passed away on June 5, 2025, while receiving medical treatment in Pretoria. The subsequent legal deadlock arose when the Lungu family petitioned for a private burial in South Africa, while the administration of President Hakainde Hichilema insisted on a state funeral at Embassy Park in Zambia—the designated resting place for the nation’s former heads of state.
“The nation will be informed of the agreed-upon details in due course,” Kabesha stated, adding that the government will now engage the family to finalize the state funeral arrangements. The August 8, 2025, judgment that facilitated this transfer also authorized an Aide De Camp, the late president’s physician, and two family members to accompany the coffin during its journey back to Zambia.
Edgar Lungu served as President of Zambia from 2015 to 2021.
