Zambian President Edgar Lungu has claimed that his country has a lot to teach the rest of the world regarding peace and the handling of refugees.

According to Lusaka Times, Lungu said this as he left the southern African country to attend the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.

The southern African leader expressed a desire to address the assembly, saying that he would use the opportunity to showcase Zambia's record of peace and acceptance of citizens from outside the country.

"Zambia has been having this problem for years now and we know what it means to have peace and we know what it means to be a refugee. So I think for us we will be teaching them [Europe] what it means to be at peace and the consequences which flow as a result of chaos," Lungu was quoted as saying.

Lungu utterances followed on from a report in which one of his critics labelled him a "true dictator" who intimidated citizens in a bid to retain power.

'We are not safe'

Induna Mabebo of Shang'ombo district in Ndola said that the recently inaugurated president had shown Zambians what a true dictator was capable of compared to former president Michael Sata.

"Today, we can no longer feel at peace in Zambia. We are in serious problems, we are not safe under this man called Edgar Lungu. We are not safe. Zambia needs to be liberated from this newborn dictator," Mabebo was quoted as saying.

Lungu was sworn in on Tuesday, with the opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema dismissing the ceremony as "illegal and unconstitutional".

Lungu took power last year, following the death of Sata. He won the August 11 election by around 100 000 votes but Hichilema alleged that the result was riddled with fraud.

The inauguration was held at a Chinese-built stadium in the capital Lusaka, with regional dignitaries, including President Robert Mugabe of neighbouring Zimbabwe, in attendance.