Countries under SADC have hailed Zambia for overseeing a peaceful transition of power after a veteran opposition politician won a landslide victory at the ballot box.

Hakainde Hichilema was declared winner yesterday Monday after roundly defeating Edgar Lungu, who had been in power for six years.

It is the third time that power has changed hands to the opposition in Zambia since 1991, on a continent where incumbent leaders often hold on to power for decades.

For example, Malawi President, Lazarus Chakwera, a former opposition politician, came to power last year after the re-election of his predecessor Arthur Mutharika was scrapped for vote-rigging and the ballot re-staged.

Chakwera has told the 16-nation Southern African Development Community (SADC) that regional peace and security depended on democratic norms being sustained and on the protection of human rights.

Lungu had claimed the election was not free or fair, while votes were being counted.

But on Tuesday, hours after the vote was declared, Lungu conceded defeat and promised to peacefully hand overpower.

A few hours later he met Hichilema in the presence of former leaders Zambia’s Rupiah Banda, Tanzania’s Jakaya Kikwete, and Sierra Leone’s Ernest Bai Koroma.