On 9th June 2024, Saulos Chilima arrived in Malawi from Korea where he attended the Korea-Africa Summit at the Kamuzu International Airport in Lilongwe.
Little did everyone know that this was the last aircraft, the Malawi Vice President would successfully alight from.
Because events that happened 24 hours later and later on will linger in Malawi history, arguably, forever.
The nation was drawn into disbelief to learn that the plane he later took to attend the burial of eminent lawyer Ralph Kasambara was never in sight of the radar.
President Lazarus Chakwera announced a full throttle rescue mission was underway. A highly followed social and mainstream buzz ran through the entire night.
Plainly, no one knew where the plane was until the next day. Nine high level officials died on spot, an announcement by Chakwera officially followed before national mourning and burial.
Joseph Dumbula takes you through ten events that have happened after the tragedy. ( Not in any order).
1. Appointment of a new Vice President
-On 20th June 2024, ten days after Chilima died and three days after burial, President Lazarus Chakwera appointed Michael Usi as the country’s vice president.
At this time, Usi was Vice President of the UTM, a party Chilima led.
Usi had also been minister of natural resources and climate change until his appointment as vice president.
Usi is known for his significant contributions to the entertainment industry as an actor, playwright, and filmmaker. He is also known for his development work in Malawi.
However, months later, after internal infighting within the UTM, he detested an impending convention and a reported disciplinary hearing.
He has since founded his own party, Okudya zake Alibe Mulandu.
2. UTM dumps the Tonse Alliance
-On 12th July, a month onwards after Chilima’s death, his party, the UTM announced daringly that it was no longer in the electoral alliance with MCP and other parties. The alliance had been known as Tonse Alliance.
The publicist Felix Njawala told a media briefing that the decision was widely supported and approved by the party’s politburo.
3. New broom at UTM
-Dalitso Kabambe was on 17th November voted President of the UTM at a highly charged convention in Mzuzu.
The former Reserve Bank of Malawi Governor promised to carry on with Chilima’s legacy and has since gone full throttle campaign.
Njawala highlighted challenges faced by Chilima within the Tonse alliance led by Lazarus Chakwera since its inception in 2020.
UTM’s decision followed Petra and Aford who apparently had announced the once nine member parties alliance.
4. Nationwide candlelight ceremonies
-In an unprecedented move, there had been incessant memorial ceremonies dubbed candlelight services for the late Chilima.
Scores of people as led by the UTM took part in the ceremonies.
Some schools of thought have argued this had been an appropriate time for the party to cast its net wider on its ideologies and those held by the foreign leader.
It is understood currently that the services will continue after the anniversary memorial slated for Nsipe, Ntcheu.
5. “What really happened for the plane to crash?”
-Of all the matters arising, debate on what transpired in Chikangawa continues to rage on. There have been conspiracy theories, varied expert opinions and varied stances by authorities. All this perhaps defines the critical nature of the entire incident.
In December last year, findings of a commission of inquiry into the plane crash ruled out foul play, attributing the accident to bad weather and other human factors.
The commission, led by its chairperson Justice Jabbar Alide, highlighted that there was no evidence of technical fault of the plane.
Additionally, the commission found that the aircraft was in good condition and had only attained 3 000 hours of flying at the time of the accident.
Among an elongated list of proposals, the commission recommended that the Office of the President and Cabinet to develop clear guidelines about the manner of procuring airplanes from the military and to ensure that they are strictly followed.
It has also recommended that the government should ensure that VIP persons travel in safe and sound aircraft.
Also, the commission stressed the need for the Malawi Defense Force to upgrade the equipment in line with needs.
Just days ago, on 7th June 2025, the Bundesstelle für Flugunfalluntersuchung (BFU), Germany’s Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation, concluded that the crash occurred due to the flight crew’s decision to proceed at low altitude despite adverse weather conditions.
The report identifies marginal weather, inadequate flight planning, and a lack of situational awareness as contributing factors to the tragedy.
6. Criticism on government
-The UTM, other parties , the clergy and identifiable social media users have however been critical of the government on the handling of the matter.
For instance, in late December 2024, UTM president Dalitso Kabambe said if voted into power, they will set up a new commission of inquiry to investigate the matter again regardless of reports issued by then.
“Just like most Malawians, we are not satisfied with the plane crash inquiry reports. Once we get into government next year, we will institute a competent commission of inquiry to investigate the plane crash which took the life of the UTM president and others. We need to get to the bottom of this,” he said at a memorial mass in Ntcheu.
Another example is that of Chilima’s wife Mary.
Earlier on, in September 2024, she posted on Facebook expressing desire for clarity on the circumstances surrounding the crash.
The post had been widely shared and commented with the MIJ Online team noting that it has been the highly followed post on her page. It has until now over 58K engagements.
7. Saulos Chilima Foundation launched
-On 12th February 2025, a day when Chilima would have turned 52, the SKC Foundation was launched in Lilongwe as graced by President Lazarus Chakwera.
The foundation seeks to champion a collective mindset change that fosters sustainable growth and development in Malawi and across Africa through excellence and innovation.
At the event, Mary had yet again said questions of the crash will keep lingering.
8. Scramble for Chilima?
-In more recent months, there have been mind-blowing remarks by officials over Chilima’s status.
For instance, Patricia Kaliati subtly slammed Usi of allegedly backstabbing Chilima.
Usi also subtly insisted at a publicly rally that only three people within the UTM confines respected and loved Chilima.
As per political eyes, it appears the Odya zake Alibe Mulandu party and UTM will really be embroided in heightened war of words this campaign.
9. “Who is more concerned?”
-The memorial this Tuesday has led to confusion.
The family of Chilima has decided to hold a memorial service at Nsipe, Ntcheu, where he was buried.
However, the government plans to hold a separate memorial service at Nthungwa Forest in Mzimba, the site of the fatal plane crash.
The family representative, Ben Chilima said following discussions with government officials , they made it known that they will proceed with the Nsipe program, as all preparations were complete.
10. The continued narrative
-Arguably, the death of Chilima will harbor around the entire campaign trail.
As monitored by the MIJ Online team, most major political rallies are not falling short of narratives about the plane crash.
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