Collapsed Zambian President Left Hospital

Zambian President Edgar Lungu, who collapsed at an International Women’s Day event Sunday, has left hospital ahead of a trip abroad for specialist treatment, his office has announced.

“The seven doctors attending to the president reached a consensus that they were satisfied that the president was in good enough condition to return home,” spokesman Amos Chanda said late Monday.

A decision would be made Tuesday about when Lungu should leave for the specialist treatment recommended by his doctors, he added.

The presidency initially said Lungu was receiving treatment for malaria but then disclosed that he was suffering from achalasia, or a narrowing of the oesophagus, which led to his collapse.

Chanda said Lungu, 58, who fell after standing for about 20 minutes during Sunday’s ceremony, had previously had the same condition corrected 30 years ago, but that it had recurred.

Lungu won a snap election in late January after the death in office of president Michael Sata in October.

Sata was Zambia’s second leader to die in office in six years, sparking calls for presidential hopefuls to undergo medical checks to guarantee their fitness.