By Chisomo Phiri
Members of a special parliamentary committee established to investigate the plane crash that killed former Vice-President Saulos Klaus Chilima and eight others have elected Nsanje South West legislator Walter Nyamilandu as chairperson.
The Malawi Defence Force (MDF) aircraft crashed on 10 June 2024 at Nthungwa in the Chikangawa Forest, claiming the lives of Chilima and eight other passengers.
The parliamentary committee was announced last week by Speaker of the Parliament, Sameer Suleman,as part of efforts by lawmakers to establish the circumstances surrounding the tragedy.
The committee brings together legislators from several political parties.
Members include Gilbert Khonyongwa, Chipalamoto Nkhwazi, Dumisani Lindani and James Mpunga of the Democratic Progressive Party(DPP); Mphatso Boti Phiri, Joshua Malango and George Jivason Kadzipatike of the Malawi Congress Party(MCP ); and Ishmael Mkumba of the United Democratic Front(UDF ).
Other members are Felix Njawala of the United Transformation Movement (UTM), Beatrice Mwale of the People’s Party(PP), and independent legislators Savel Kafwafwa, Nyamilandu and Dyless Moses Bengo.
The committee is expected to begin its work soon and will investigate the circumstances surrounding the crash before presenting its findings to Parliament.
Findings of the inquiry released on December 14, 2024 ruled out foul play, but attributed the accident to bad weather and other human factors.
The commission, chaired by High Court of Malawi Judge Jabbar Alide, also said there was no evidence of technical fault of the plane, adding that the aircraft was in good condition and had attained 3 000 hours of flying at the time of the accident.
A final technical report by the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation released on June 7, 2025 established that human error was among the contributing factors to the plane crash.
Immediately after the mangled wreck of the ill-fated plane was found, the former president Lazarus Chakwera told the nation that all people on board “died instantly on impact” and that findings of investigations would be made public.
The nine were travelling to Nkhata Bay to attend the burial of former minister of Justice and Attorney General Ralph Kasambara
