Former President of Zambia, Edgar Chagwa Lungu, passed away on Thursday at the age of 68 while receiving specialised medical care in Pretoria, South Africa. His death was announced by his political party, the Patriotic Front (PF), and confirmed by his daughter, Tasila Lungu, a member of Zambia’s parliament.
“My father had been under medical supervision in recent weeks. This condition was managed with dignity and privacy,” she said in a video message.
Lungu had been battling a rare health condition that caused a narrowing of the oesophagus, a problem for which he had previously undergone treatment in South Africa during his presidency. He died just six months after a renewed attempt to return to active politics was blocked by Zambia’s constitutional court, which ruled him ineligible to run for president again.
Born on November 11, 1956, in Ndola, in Zambia’s copperbelt region, Lungu trained as a lawyer before entering politics. He served as Minister of Justice and later Minister of Defence under President Michael Sata. Upon Sata’s death in 2015, Lungu was elected as Zambia’s sixth president and subsequently won a full term in office in 2016.
During his tenure, Lungu was praised for a wide-reaching road construction initiative that expanded national infrastructure. However, his administration was also marked by economic turbulence, including Zambia’s default on international debt in 2020. That default, coupled with rising public dissatisfaction, contributed to his electoral defeat in 2021 by opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema.
Political analyst Lee Habasonda of the University of Zambia described Lungu’s legacy as “chequered.”
“He will be remembered for tolerating thuggery by his supporters although he also represented a brand of politicians who interacted across class,” Habasonda said.
While he was credited with giving the poorest Zambians proximity to power, he was also criticised for tolerating the unruly behaviour of his supporters and for souring relations with key international partners, including the United States and the International Monetary Fund.
After his defeat in 2021, Lungu initially retired from politics but made a brief return in 2023, regaining leadership of the Patriotic Front and positioning himself as a potential presidential candidate. That ambition was cut short in December 2024 when the Constitutional Court ruled that he was constitutionally barred from running for another term.
Lungu’s passing closes a significant chapter in Zambia’s post-independence history, marked by both infrastructural advancement and political controversy.
Melissa Enoch
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