June tenth marked the first anniversary of one of the most tragic days in the history of this small country. We remembered that cold and foggy evening in 2024 when the harsh winds whispered death to our ears. That was the day the country lost its vice president, Saulos Klaus Chilima, and eight other people in a plane crash just outside the city of Mzuzu. The accident was not only tragic because it claimed big names, but also because such occurrences are rare in a country where flying is a luxury. Here, to die in a plane crash is almost unheard of.
Since the accident, there has been tension on the political landscape. Tension thick enough that it suffocates. This was even clear in what transpired when we remembered this tragedy last week. Since news of the accident broke over a year ago, we have had competing narratives as to what might have transpired and what really caused the accident. There is one camp—comprising those who were very fond of Chilima—that suspects foul play in all of this. We have heard tongues of accusations, some whispered, others loud. We have seen political parties cracking and alliances falling apart because people can’t just agree on a single story around the accident.
The UTM Party is perhaps the worst hit and they have publicly expressed their dissatisfaction with official explanations of the events around the accident. In one way or another, they feel that something somewhere is not right. Those who loved Chilima somehow feel that the gods of fate did them great injustice by ending his promising life so tragically just when they needed him most. This is why they did not join government officials in their memorial service at the scene of the accident this year. UTM officials and Chilima diehards rather chose to attend another memorial service at his resting place in Ntcheu District.
On the other side of the divide are government officials, who own the official narrative around the accident. We may remember that, after the tragedy, the government instituted a commission of inquiry that later released a report on the accident. Apart from this locally-constituted commission, an expert German agency also came up with its report, which justifies the crash as an accident mostly attributed to human error. This is despite the fact that the flight had no recorders to provide concrete factual evidence as it is mostly the case in such tragedies. Nevertheless, the reports are out there for everyone to read.
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The existence of these two competing schools of thought on the accident and the tragic death of the vice president is a cause for concern, especially now that we are heading towards a general election in the next few months. This political rift not only creates room for tension and mistrust; it also has the potential to affect voting patterns. On the one hand, the mistrust emanating from unfounded rumors may potentially lead to chaos and political violence. On the other hand, some pockets of people may opt for apathy because they simply cannot trust the system following all the rumour mongering.
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Interestingly, both sides—the opposition as in UTM and the government—seem to be capitalising on Chilima’s death for political mileage. Since it happened last year, the UTM has mainly been mobilizing around the tragedy—holding candle-lighting ceremonies around the country, to begin with. They are also using Chilima’s memory to appeal to the sympathy of the general public by, among other things, playing his speeches during political rallies. On the other hand, the ruling regime has decided to make a statement on Chilima’s tombstone by naming the newly-constructed highway in Lilongwe after the fallen leader. This, too, is big in a bid to regain public confidence and demystify unfounded narratives around the accident.
In the end, we come to realise that Chilima’s tragic death has become a site of heavy political contestation. The question is; how much will this affect us as we head for the general elections this September? We can only hope that people will go to the polls with the future of this country in their minds. We, as Malawians, should not be easily distracted by some of the games that politicians play at the expense of our wellbeing. Above all, politics should not be played around death.
