By Chisomo Phiri

Government has announced that a fresh inquiry will be conducted into the plane crash that claimed the lives of the late Vice President Saulos Chilima and eight others.

Chilima and the eight victims died in a military plane crash on June 10, 2024, in Chikangawa Forest in Mzimba.

The Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Charles Mhango, made the announcement in Parliament on Tuesday.

Mhango said president  Arthur Peter Mutharika has consented to the new investigation.

“The President has agreed that another inquiry should be conducted,however, this process will be handled by Parliament, which will appoint a committee to carry out the inquiry,” said Mhango.

The minister added that subsection 3 of the Constitution of Malawi empowers Parliament to conduct such investigations.

“This inquiry will involve experts from outside the country, who will advise the committee before it reaches its final conclusions,” he said.

On his part,United Transformation Movement (UTM ) Publicity Director Felix Njawala welcomed the development.

Wife to Chilima , Mary ,has however thanked  Mutharika for ordering the fresh inquiry.

“Zikomo kwambiri, kwabasi, Your Excellency…” reads part of Mary’s post on her Facebook page.

The previous inquiry findings instituted by the former president Lazarus Chakwera revealed that bad weather was the greatest cause of the plane crash.

It was revealed that the pilot on the day did not consult Kamuzu International Airport (KIA ) to find out how the weather was.

Chairperson of the commission of the inquiry,Justice Jabbar Alide, stated that the weather was bad in Mzuzu as it was foggy, causing poor visibility and very cold and it was getting worse despite that the plane had already took off from KIA.

“The commission found out that the pilot did not have any weather information about the day  which was supposed to be obtained from the Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services(DCCMS) before commencing to Mzuzu for the funeral of the late Ralph Kasambala.

“Based on the evidence, the commission found no proof of technical issues that caused the  accident that claimed the lives of the vice president and other eight people,” Alide read the report.

The commission further  stated that the Malawi Air Force Dornier 228 aircraft was in good condition a day before and on the actual day of the accident and that the aircraft had been duly maintained by the Malawi Air Force.

According to the manufacturer’s specifications, the plane was designed to cover 29,000 flying hours and the one which crashed at Chikangawa had completed only over 3,000 hours.

The report alluded that the cause of the crash was due to environmental factors which includes bad weather that led to poor communication while the plane was in the middle of the journey.

The commission of inquiry made its recommendations after conducting a thorough investigation.

This included examining the actual site of the accident, consulting the Malawi Police Service (MPS) and the Malawi Defence Force(MDF), and gathering information from all relevant sources connected to the incident.

“The commission of the enquiry visited Chikangwa forest and all places surrounding the place,  Mzuzu airport, Mzuzu police and Malawi a defence Force from Mzuzu as the first hand witness of the accident.

“The commission also engaged with the Zomba MDF and interviewed the deceased’s family before proceeding to Lilongwe, where it interacted with the President, the Secretary to the Office of the President(OPC), the MDF, the Malawi Police Service, Airtel Malawi, MACRA, and other stakeholders,” read part of the statement.

The commission of inquiry concluded that the plane crash was caused by a combination of environmental and human factors, based on evidence gathered from various individuals, institutions, and stakeholders.