SOUTH AFRICA’S TOP COURT REFUSES LUNGU FAMILY DIRECT APPEAL OVER BURIAL DISPUTE

By Brian Matambo – Lusaka, Zambia

SOUTH AFRICA’S CONSTITUTIONAL COURT has rejected an urgent application by the family of former Zambian President Edgar Chagwa Lungu to appeal directly against a Pretoria High Court order requiring the surrender and repatriation of his remains to Lusaka for a state funeral. The ruling is the latest twist in a legal and political battle that has exposed deep tensions between the Lungu family and President Hakainde Hichilema’s government.

In a decision dated *26 AUGUST 2025*, the CONSTITUTIONAL COURT held that “no case has been made out for a direct appeal,” formally refusing the family’s request to bypass the Supreme Court of Appeal. The order, signed by Acting Registrar Dunisani Mathiba, means the matter will not be heard immediately by South Africa’s highest court.

THE ROOT OF THE DISPUTE
The family of the late president has consistently maintained that they were willing to repatriate his body to Zambia on the condition that President Hichilema would not attend the funeral. They argued that this was in line with Mr. Lungu’s personal wishes, citing his deep estrangement from his successor.

When the Zambian government refused to guarantee that condition, the family announced that the burial would proceed privately in Johannesburg, where Mr. Lungu died. But on the very day of the planned funeral, the government launched urgent proceedings in the Gauteng High Court, demanding that the widow, Esther Lungu, surrender the body for state repatriation. The High Court ruled in favour of the state, setting off the appeal process.

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT DRAWS A LINE
South African law places a high bar on direct access to the Constitutional Court. Appeals are expected to follow the established route from the High Court to the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA), before ultimately reaching the apex court. Direct appeals are granted only in cases that present urgent constitutional questions of public importance and where it is in the interests of justice to bypass the intermediate stage.

By refusing the Lungu family’s application, the court reaffirmed its longstanding position that contested matters involving both factual and constitutional elements should first be ventilated in the SCA.

NEXT STEPS FOR THE FAMILY
The refusal does not end the family’s legal battle. They now have the option of approaching the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein. If successful, the case could later return to the Constitutional Court. For now, however, the High Court’s ruling in favour of repatriation technically stands.

The dispute underscores both the personal grief of a family and the political symbolism attached to the burial of a former head of state. For the Lungu family, the matter centers on dignity, safety, and respect for the late president’s wishes. For the Zambian government, it is about state protocol and national honour.

A DISPUTE THAT RESONATES BEYOND THE COURTROOM
The controversy has resonated far beyond South Africa’s courts. Mr. Lungu, who served as Zambia’s sixth president from 2015 to 2021, remains a polarising figure. His death and contested funeral arrangements have reignited debates about political rivalry, national unity, and the treatment of former leaders.

As the case advances through South Africa’s appellate system, the question of where and how Edgar Lungu will finally be laid to rest remains unresolved. What began as a private family decision has become a test of law, diplomacy, and political culture in both South Africa and Zambia.