Malawi’s president said on Tuesday that Vice President Saulos Chilima and nine others were killed when a small military plane they were on crashed in the southern African mountain range.
Malawi’s President Lazarus Chakwera announced live on state television that the plane had been found after more than a day of searching through dense jungle and hills near the northern city of Mzuzu.
“I am deeply saddened and sorry to have to inform you all that this is a terrible tragedy,” Chakwera said. “Search and rescue teams found the plane near a hill. They found that the plane was completely destroyed and there were no survivors.”
According to the president, Chilima, 51, was on the plane with Shanile Zimbili, the ex-wife of former President Bakili Muluzi and former first lady, five other passengers and three military crew members.
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Malawi’s Vice President Saulos Chilima was on board with nine other people in a small military plane when the plane crashed in the mountains near the northern city of Mzuzu. There were no survivors. (Reuters TV/Erdson Chagala/via Reuters/File Photo)
The group was travelling to Mzuzu to attend the funeral of the former government minister. Mr Chilima had just returned from an official visit to South Korea on Sunday.
Malawi’s Vice President Saulos Chilima and his wife Mary disembarked from a plane in Lilongwe, Malawi on Sunday after returning from South Korea. (AP Photo, File)
The plane went missing during a 45-minute flight from Malawi’s capital, Lilongwe, to Mzuzu. Chakwera said contact was lost after air traffic controllers told the pilot to return to Lilongwe instead of landing at Mzuzu airport due to bad weather and poor visibility.
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About 300 police officers, 200 soldiers and local forest rangers were involved in the search for the plane, authorities said.
Chilima was serving his second term as vice president after previously serving as vice president under former President Peter Mutharika from 2014 to 2019.
Malawi’s Vice President Saulos Chilima was serving his second term as vice president. (AMOS GUMULIRA/AFP via Getty Images, File)
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Chilima had previously faced corruption charges but prosecutors dropped them last month. Chilima has denied any wrongdoing.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
