By Brian Matambo
Africa-Press – Zambia. On this week’s edition of EMV Tonight, Ambassador Emmanuel Mwamba convened a charged conversation with diaspora voices Queen Pumi and Lillian Mutambo, two outspoken women who have emerged as rallying points in the unfolding battle over the legacy of former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu.
The discussion traversed two major flashpoints: the continuing legal dispute in the Gauteng High Court over the government’s attempt to repatriate Lungu’s remains to Zambia, and President Hakainde Hichilema’s controversial appearance at a memorial service for late President Levy Mwanawasa and his widow, Maureen.
What emerged was not only a searing indictment of the government’s handling of Lungu’s death, but also a reminder of the growing political weight of women influencers in Zambia’s fractured democracy.
THE COURT BATTLE OVER ECL’S REMAINS
Mwamba opened with a sober recap of events in South Africa’s High Court, where judges initially sided with Zambia’s Attorney General to repatriate the late president’s body. But the Lungu family swiftly appealed, filing at the Constitutional Court on grounds that Zambian law cited in the ruling was misapplied in South Africa.
“It distressed so many people when UPND supporters celebrated that ruling,” Mwamba observed. “How do you bury a body without the family? How do you even dress it? But thanks to quick legal work, the case is now in abeyance.”
For Mutambo, a qualified social worker and human rights advocate, the matter was deeply personal. “I was shocked when I learned that President Lungu had been denied medical access and even pulled off a plane. As a woman, I cannot stand to see another woman like Esther Lungu denied dignity as she buries her husband. This is not politics, it is about humanity.”
Queen Pumi, founder of the New Era Democratic Party and a human rights campaigner, was equally unsparing. “The Bible in Exodus warns against oppressing widows. Yet here we are with an entire government abusing a grieving widow with state machinery. This has become an international embarrassment and a violation of our traditions.”
Callers echoed the outrage. A woman from what she called “the AI Kingdom” warned: “You cannot bury a president without his family. Even unclaimed bodies are treated with more respect.” Another caller from Canada said bluntly: “This family has the grace to bring the entire government of UPND down without fighting. They should be left alone.”
THE MEMORIAL CONTROVERSY
The second segment examined Hichilema’s decision to attend the 17th memorial of President Mwanawasa, an irregular move given government protocol restricts sponsorship to the first, fifth, tenth, and subsequent five-year anniversaries.
At the event, the President revisited last year’s salacious rumors about Chipo Mwanawasa, Levy’s daughter and now a senior government advisor. In front of his wife, the First Lady, he recalled making Chipo stand up to prove she was not pregnant with his child.
For Mutambo, the President’s words were reckless. “Instead of honoring Mwanawasa’s legacy, the headline became Chipo. This was embarrassing. Why elevate rumors at a memorial?”
Queen Pumi was sharper still: “That was humiliation. Chipo is educated, accomplished, and could work anywhere, but she is being demeaned at State House. This government thrives on propaganda and distractions while poverty worsens.”
Callers reinforced the critique. “Mr. President, you are killing this girl with mental health pressure,” said one listener. “We wanted you to speak about Mwanawasa’s fight against corruption, not Chipo’s alleged pregnancy.”
A GENDERED OPPOSITION
Both guests framed their intervention not as partisan politicking but as women defending another woman. “We the women are the opposition,” said Mutambo. “Once women stand united, governments fall.”
Pumi added: “When you do not listen to women’s voices, you are doomed for failure. We supported UPND into power in 2021, but today we see betrayal.”
Even Socialist Party leader Fred M’membe, texted in, praised the pair. “Comrades Lillian and Pumi, your courage and clarity inspire us. When women fight and men join, that people is invincible.”
A PRESIDENT UNDER FIRE
Hichilema’s absence from the SADC summit in Madagascar, his minimal foreign travel since Lungu’s passing, and his reliance on younger advisors drew harsh reviews.
“President Hichilema has failed to show humility, failed to unify us, failed to comfort the grieving family,” Mutambo concluded. “Instead of statesmanship, we see obsession with control.”
Ambassador Mwamba, noted that while many speeches at the Mwanawasa memorial were moving, the President “waffled, then embarrassed his own administration by resurrecting a rumor better left buried.”
WHAT IT MEANS
The episode underscored how the Lungu dispute is no longer confined to the courts. It has become a stage where questions of tradition, human rights, women’s voices, and political leadership collide.
If this week’s broadcast was any measure, women like Mutambo and Pumi are no longer on the sidelines. They are emerging as central actors in Zambia’s bruising debate over dignity, power, and mem
Source: zambianobserver
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