President Lazarus Chakwera has announced the death of his deputy, Saulos Chilima and nine others in a plane crash in Chikangawa Forest in Mzuzu.
The nine other individuals on board, including Lukas Kapheni, Chisomo Chimaneni, Gloria Mtukule, former first lady Shanil Dzimbiri, Dan Kanyemba, Abdul Lapukeni, as well as Colonel Sambalopa, Major Selemani, and Major Aidin, who were the MDF officers operating the aircraft.
The plane carrying the deceased failed to make its scheduled landing at Mzuzu International Airport at 10:02, yesterday, and on its return to Lilongwe, crashed in the thick forest.
In a televised address, Chakwera said the plane is completely destroyed and all passengers on board were killed on impact.
“I can imagine how much pain and anguish people must be feeling at this time. I can imagine how much pain and anguish people will be feeling in the coming days and weeks, we feel pain and helpless at the loss of our beloved one,” he said
“Words cannot describe how heartbreaking this is, and I can only imagine how much pain and anguish you all must be feeling at this time, as well as how much pain and anguish you all will be feeling in the coming days and weeks as we mourn this terrible loss.
“I also know that going through a terrible loss like this makes us feel helpless and lost, as death has a way of reminding us that we do not have control over so many things that affect our lives and those we love.
“We feel helpless because we know that the people who perished in thistragic and terrible accident could have been any one of us, and we feel helpless because a day like today reminds us that one day and any day death will in fact come for each one of us and we will be powerless to stop it.
“That aircraft is an aircraft I myself has used on similar trips, an aircraft that others had used just the day before, and an aircraft that the crew had operated successfully just hours before.
“And yet despite the track record of the aircraft and the experience of the crew, something terrible went wrong with that aircraft on its flight back to Lilongwe, sending it crashing down and killing everyone on board and leaving us all devastated and asking ourselves questions whose answers cannot take away the pain and helplessness we feel from this loss.
“I know that it is natural for the pain and helplessness this tragedy causes to make us feel angry because we feel hurt and wounded, and I want you to know that I understand these feelings because I feel them too. So because we are all feeling these things, it is important that we comfort each other now and in the weeks to come as we mourn together,” he said
Earlier, Malawi Defense Force (MDF) Commander General Paul Valentino Phiri announced that a 200-Company class troop was deployed to Chikangawa Forest to search for the plane.
During a media briefing in Lilongwe on Tuesday, General Phiri stated that as of now, nothing has been found in the search which commenced yesterday.
He mentioned that challenging weather, difficult terrains, and various interferences are hampering the operation.
