Search for Aircraft Carrying Malawi’s Vice President, a “devout Catholic”, Ongoing

Lilongwe, 10 June, 2024 / 11:17 PM

Search and rescue operations are ongoing in Malawi to recover the aircraft carrying Malawi’s vice president and nine others after the plane went missing on Monday, June 10.

The military aircraft carrying Mr. Saulos Klaus Chilima and nine others failed to make a landing Monday morning, according to a statement from the Secretary to the president and cabinet, Colleen Zamba.

“All efforts by aviation authorities to make contact with the Aircraft since it went off the radar have failed thus far,” she said.

Ms Zamba further said, “As such, the Commander of the Malawi Defense Force, General Valentino Phiri, has since informed His Excellency Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera of the incident and the President has since canceled his scheduled departure for the Bahamas and ordered all regional and national agencies to conduct an immediate search and rescue operation to locate the whereabouts of the aircraft.”

She said the public will be updated of any developments on the situation as facts are established.

In an interview with ACI Africa Tuesday, June 11, the Secretary General of the Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM), Fr. Valeriano Mtseka said since the news broke out about the missing aircraft, “Nothing new because the search is still going on”

Fr. Mtseka described the VP as a “devout Catholic.”

Following the incident, Malawians on social media have been praying for the safety of the vice president and the other nine.

“Praying for Saulos Klaus Chilima, vice president of Malawi whose plane had gone missing. It was scheduled to land at 10:10 am but this is already 16:29pm,” Fr. Edmond Nyoka said in a tweet.

He said the missing vice president is “a very devout Catholic who attended the Holy Mass daily. Praying for his wife to be strong at this moment.”

Born in February 1973, Dr. Chilima is a Ngoni from Ntcheu District in Central Malawi. He is married to Mary and together they have two children.

Dr. Chilima is a Roman Catholic with leadership positions in the church.