TONSE Alliance spokesperson Sean Tembo says they remain deliberately inactive on the political front, as a mark of deep respect for their fallen chairman, late former President Lungu, whose body remains unburied for close to two months since his passing.
Speaking during an interview on Diamond TV last night, Tembo said there was a strategic paralysis that has gripped the Alliance since Lungu’s planned burial in South Africa was halted by a court injunction.
Tembo revealed that the Alliance, has intentionally scaled down on its political activities out of consideration for the Lungu family and the Alliance’s own internal mourning process.
He further added that it is for this reason that the Tonse Alliance is unable to move forward, despite growing public pressure for them to re-enter the political ring.
“It would be disrespectful to the family of President Lungu, who was our chairman, for us to begin to embark on most of the public political activities before we bury the chairman. So it is tying our hands and our feet a little bit,” Tembo explained.
The former president died on June 5 while receiving treatment in South Africa.
However, efforts to lay him to rest in Zambia were met with back and forth disagreements between the Lungu family and Government.
The former first family later settled to bury Lungu in South Africa but at the eleventh hour, Government sued the family in the Pretoria High Court, halting the funeral procession.
Submissions have been met and rulling is expected next month on August 4.
Tonse mouthpiece expressed hope that the court would issue a judgment soon after, allowing the family to proceed with Lungu’s burial and the Alliance to resume its political programmes with renewed energy.
By George Musonda
Kalemba July 30, 2025
