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The Pretoria High Court has ordered that any person seeking access to the body of former Zambian President Edgar Lungu must first obtain a court order, with notice to the Lungu family.
The court also set aside its earlier order that had allowed the release of the body to the family, placing the remains under strict judicial control pending an appeal before the Supreme Court of Appeal.
In a further directive, the court ordered that the body be placed in the custody of AVBOB Funeral Parlour in Pretoria East, with all costs to be borne by the Government of Zambia.
If AVBOB declines the appointment, the court said an alternative mortuary will be designated.
The ruling follows allegations that the Lungu family acted in defiance of a previous court order by instructing the South African Police Service (SAPS) to transfer the remains to a private funeral parlour in the East Rand, outside court-sanctioned arrangements.
In an urgent application for reconsideration, Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha argued that the ex parte order granted on April 22, 2026 should be set aside due to material non-disclosure, misrepresentation and irregularities in how the matter was presented to court.
Kabesha told the court that despite knowing SAPS had lawfully taken custody of the body under Section 3(2) of South Africa’s Inquests Act for forensic purposes, the family allegedly failed to disclose this fact, creating what he described as a misleading impression that their immediate custody claim was justified.
He further alleged that the family sought to bypass a July 2, 2025 order which had designated Two Mountains as the lawful undertaker by redirecting the remains to another facility.
Kabesha said the conduct suggested an attempt to retain control of the body and potentially remove it from South Africa, thereby frustrating the ongoing inquest.
Kabesha warned that such actions risked causing irreparable harm to the Zambian government and undermining judicial oversight. He urged the court to set aside the ex parte order and maintain SAPS custody until forensic examinations are completed and lawful repatriation procedures are followed.
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