Chilima died from negligence, not a plot – stop this useless inquiry

By Martha Ziya Zimba

Let’s tell the truth that many Malawians are afraid to say.

Dr Saulos Chilima and eight other Malawians died on June 10, 2024, because of incompetence and negligence, not because someone shot down their plane or because former President Lazarus Chakwera or anyone else plotted their deaths.

The German investigation pointed to pilot error, poor weather assessment and inadequate flight planning.

It also raised concerns about the aircraft’s emergency locator transmitter, which was reportedly not functioning, and the absence of a flight data recorder.

That is the level of negligence and institutional failure we must confront.

That is what we should be demanding answers about, because our Vice President and eight other people lost their lives.

Yet, what are we doing now? We have established another Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry, led by Walter Nyamilandu Manda, to find the truth.

But what exactly are we looking for when an investigation has already presented findings on what may have caused the crash?

This is a waste of taxpayers’ money, time and resources.

It risks turning a national tragedy into another political battleground, keeping Chilima’s name in the headlines while the underlying problems of negligence, outdated equipment and poor leadership in the Malawi Defence Force remain unresolved.

Ken Msonda was right to question the continued expenditure on the inquiry.

Instead of spending millions on allowances and another investigation, why can’t we direct those resources towards improving aviation safety and ensuring that the country has reliable aircraft and equipment?

How many more lives must be lost before we take these issues seriously?

The German findings should not simply be ignored, but neither should any new inquiry be dismissed without considering its mandate and whether it can address unanswered questions.

What Malawians deserve is a clear explanation of what went wrong, who was responsible and what has been done to prevent a similar tragedy.

Enough is enough. Let us stop turning this tragedy into a political contest.

Let Dr Chilima and the other eight victims rest in peace, and let us focus on fixing the failures that contributed to their deaths.