By Thomas Mbewe
Africa-Press – Zambia. In a shocking twist of political opportunism, the delayed burial of former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu has exposed what sources describe as a cold and calculated scheme by those closest to him. At the centre of the storm is family lawyer and aspiring presidential candidate Makebi Zulu, who is manipulating the Lungu family’s grief for his own political ambitions.
Reliable sources indicate that even before the remains of the late former President could be laid to rest, Makebi Zulu had already declared his intention to run for the country’s highest office in the 13th August 2026 General Election. This move, described by political analysts as unprecedented and indecent, has raised serious questions about Zulu’s moral compass.
Despite serving as both the family spokesperson and the Lungu family’s lawyer, Makebi Zulu has refused to relinquish these sensitive roles, choosing instead to wield them as tools of influence. Critics argue that a man of integrity would have immediately stepped aside to avoid a conflict of interest. Instead, Zulu’s insatiable appetite for money and power has led him to deliberately mislead the Lungu family over burial arrangements for political expediency.
“He is holding onto the body of ECL to win sympathy from the Zambian people ahead of the elections,” a family insider alleged. “Every day that passes without burial, Makebi gains a platform to portray himself as a victim.”
But it is the darker allegations that have truly shocked the nation. Makebi Zulu, it is now being whispered, is a criminal just like his own younger brother Caleb Zulu, a police officer who was arrested after being implicated in the gruesome death of Guntila, the former Director-General of the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA). Court records and confessions from the younger Zulu reportedly confirm that he was heavily involved in the murder of Guntila. Shockingly, Caleb Zulu sees nothing abnormal in Makebi’s handling of the former President’s remains, leading many to question the entire family’s moral compass
“A man whose own blood brother stands accused of high-level murder has no business lecturing Zambians on leadership,” said a legal observer who spoke on condition of anonymityl
Meanwhile, Esther Lungu, the former First Lady knows exactly what happened to her husband. Together with Makebi Zulu, she is accused of concealing the truth and playing along with the delay in burial for reasons that serve their own interests, not those of the Zambian people.
The Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) now faces a critical test of its commitment to professional ethics. Makebi Zulu is a member of the bar, yet his actions as both lawyer to the Lungu family and family spokesperson – while simultaneously aspiring to become Republican President – raise profound questions about his professionalism.
Can a lawyer legitimately serve a grieving family while using that very position to advance his personal political ambitions? Is it ethical for a legal practitioner to delay the burial of a client’s loved one for political expediency? These are questions that LAZ cannot afford to ignore.
The Association must urgently investigate whether Makebi Zulu has breached the code of conduct governing legal practitioners. His dual roles present a clear conflict of interest. A lawyer who places his own presidential ambitions above the dignity and final wishes of a deceased former President has no claim to the title “professional.”
Zambians are asking: Where is LAZ’s voice? If the Association remains silent, it will have tacitly endorsed the very kind of unprofessional conduct that brings the entire legal profession into disrepute.
Makebi Zulu, alongside his PF collaborators including Richard Musukwa and Jonas Zimba, believed they could arm-twist the Zambian government by using the remains of the late President as a bargaining chip. Their plan was simple: delay the burial, create public sympathy, and ride that wave into State House.
Zambians have proven that they are no longer a docile electorate. They have seen through the manipulation. They recognise political chancers, propagandists, and those who would desecrate the dignity of a former leader for cheap votes. Nothing has been achieved by this macabre theatre except public revulsion.
“They thought we would weep and vote for them. Instead, we are watching them dig their own political graves,” said a resident of Matero.
Makebi Zulu cannot have it both ways. If he truly aspires to be the Republican President, he must behave in a manner befitting a leader. That begins with surrendering the body of Edgar Lungu to the government so that the Zambian people can finally bury their former President with the dignity he deserves.
The days of using corpses as campaign tools must end. Zambia is watching. And Zambia will remember at the ballot box.
Ilelanga News. April 25, 2026.
Source: The Zambian Observer – The Zambian Observer
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