Former Malawi Defence Force (MDF) Commander General Dr. Paul Velentino Phiri, says he told President Dr. Lazarus Chakwera at 10:35 a.m that the military plane which took the former Vice President Dr. Saulosi Chilima failed to land in Mzuzu and that all efforts are being made to communicate with the crew members but all this failed.
On the 10th June, 2024 Limpopo FM online radio station brought to Malawians a Breaking News that the plane which took Dr. Chilima to Mzuzu went missing and it took about five hours for President Dr. Chakwera to inform the nation on the missing aircraft.
Malawians are all aware that it was in the afternoon of Monday,10th June, 2024 that President Chakwera ordered for deployment of the search mission in the Chikangawa forest and not lies as presented by the firmer Army Chief General Dr. Paul Velentino Phiri.
Presenting his testimony to the Parliamentary Adhoc Committee on Tuesday, General Phiri said Dr. Lazarus Chakwera was not aware that Dr. Saulosi Chilima was back from South Korea but accepted that Dr. Chilima can use the military aircraft to Mzuzu, travel to Nkhatabay by road and use the same aircraft back to Lilongwe.
Dr. Velentino Phiri said he told Dr. Lucky Sikwese, the former Principal Secretary in the office of the Vice President to fallow all the protocols needed to hiring a military plane, and to make sure that the plane is in good condition to carry the country’s second in command Dr. Saulosi Chilima, and others.Malawians Demand Investigation into Plane Crash That Killed Former Vice President Saulos Chilima
Appearing before the Adhoc Committee, the current MDF Commander General George Jafu, said there was no written request from the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) regarding the hiring of the military aircraft.
General Jafu told the committee that all decisions for the hiring of a military aircraft was done verbally, and through phone conversations.
He dismissed the earlier statement in the previous Chakwera inquiry which faulted wrong that the pilot Major Flora Selemani Gwirinji flew an aircraft using an expired license saying the pilots were well all qualified people.
” It is very unacceptable to assign unqualified people to fly the plane carrying a very high profile person like Dr. Saulosi Chilima,” said General Jafu.
General Jafu said instead of the Black Box, military aircrafts use Emergency Locator Transmitter but in the case of the plane which carried Dr. Chilima, the Locator Transmitter has not been functioning since 2004.
