Who Is Winter Kabimba to Discredit President Lungu’s Final Wishes?

By Thandiwe Ketis Ngoma

In the solemn shadow of national mourning, as millions of Zambians come to terms with the loss of former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu, one would expect leaders, past and present, to exercise dignity, respect, and restraint. Yet out of the blue, Mr. Winter Kabimba, a man whose political relevance has been waning for years, has surfaced with an audacious claim that he does not believe President Lungu expressed his desire to be laid to rest without the presence of President Hakainde Hichilema.

The Family Has Spoken. Respect That.

According to the family spokesperson, the late President Lungu told his family that he did not want President Hichilema near his body or at his funeral. Whether one agrees with this sentiment or not is immaterial. The fact is, it was his wish, and the family has every right and responsibility to honour it.

Audacity or Arrogance?

It takes a staggering level of arrogance to publicly dismiss the word of a grieving family. In African culture, and Zambian tradition in particular, funerals are sacred. The wishes of the deceased, as communicated by their family, are not to be second-guessed by political bystanders seeking airtime.

If the family says that was President Lungu’s wish, that should be the end of the discussion.

The only reason to challenge it is to hijack the narrative, to derail public attention from the real issue—how the former President was treated in his final years and the growing public anger over the government’s attempt to sanitize history.

A Crisis Is Not Your Comeback Stage

Let us call this what it is. Winter Kabimba is using the death of Edgar Lungu as a platform to reassert his voice in national discourse. He is turning national mourning into a microphone. And in doing so, he is disrespecting the dignity of the very man whose legacy he pretends to honor.

A true statesman would know when to be silent. A genuine leader would amplify the voices of the family, not drown them out with unsolicited theories.

This is not about belief. This is about basic human decency. President Lungu’s family has spoken. His widow has spoken. Whether you are in government, in opposition, or fading into obscurity like Mr. Kabimba, your duty is to respect that.

Anything less is shameless political theatre.

Final Thought

In moments of national pain, opportunists often emerge. But we must not allow them to distort the truth or disrespect the dead.

When a man’s final wishes are spoken through the lips of his grieving wife, the decent response is not disbelief.

It is silence.

It is respect.

It is knowing your place.