Malawi’s vice president and 9 others are confirmed dead after the wreckage of their plane is located
Malawian Vice President Saulos Chilima and nine other people died when the small military plane they were traveling in crashed in bad weather in a mountainous region in the north of the country, the president said Tuesday. Chilima was 51.
President Lazarus Chakwera announced in a live address on state television that the wreckage of the plane had been located after a search of more than a day in thick forests and hilly terrain near the northern city of Mzuzu. He said the wreckage was found near a hill and the plane had been “completely destroyed” and everyone onboard was killed on impact.
Chakwera said he had been informed by the head of Malawi’s armed forces that the plane had been found and “I am deeply saddened and sorry to inform you all that it has turned out to be a terrible tragedy.”
“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,” Chakwera said.
He said Chilima was “a good man, a devoted father and husband, a patriotic citizen who served his country with distinction, and a formidable vice president.”
The group was traveling to Mzuzu to attend the funeral of a former government minister. Chilima had just returned from an official visit to South Korea on Sunday.
Chilima was serving his second term as vice president. He was also in the role from 2014-2019 under former President Peter Mutharika. He was a candidate in the 2019 Malawian presidential election and finished third, behind the incumbent, Mutharika, and Chakwera. The vote was later annulled by Malawi’s Constitutional Court because of irregularities.
Chilima then joined Chakwera’s campaign as his running mate in an historic election rerun in 2020, when Chakwera was elected president. It was the first time in Africa that an election result that was overturned by a court resulted in a defeat for the sitting president.
https://apnews.com/article/malawi-missing-plane-vice-president-chilima-c071c832931d7cfeae92f9bb1c199075