Yesterday evening, Sunday 16 June, in Ntcheu, in central Malawi, an accident occurred during the passage of the funeral procession of Vice President Saulos Chilima, who died a few days ago in a helicopter crash.
Malawi, Vice President Chilima died in a plane crash
The information is not very precise, but it seems that a car would have lost control due to some rocks placed along the road, near a petrol station, hitting some people on the edges who were watching the coffin pass, heading towards the village birthplace of Chilima, 180 kilometers south of the capital Lilongwe, before his burial scheduled for today, Monday 17 June.
The toll is dramatic: four people died, including a pregnant woman, and twelve were injured and are receiving treatment at the Ntcheu district hospital.
The Vice President of Malawi, Saulos Klaus Chilima, was a prominent figure with deep roots in Ntcheu, where he was born in Nsipe in 1973. Chilima belonged to the Ngoni ethnic group and had always maintained strong ties with his place of origin, so the local population was particularly affected by the tragic death of the vice president.
Subsequently, protest chants were raised and several cars were hit by stones, so the leaders of the UTM party condemned the violence and called for calm. Party spokesperson Felix Njawala and General Secretary Patricia Kaliati asked their supporters to avoid violence, stressing that Chilima was a promoter of peace. Chilima founded the UTM (United Transformation Movement) in 2018 to participate in the 2019 presidential elections, after breaking away from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
Chilima had extensive experience in business and politics. Prior to his political career, he had held significant roles in major companies such as Airtel Malawi, Unilever Malawi and Coca-Cola. He became vice president of Malawi in 2014 and was re-elected in 2020.
The helicopter crash that caused his death occurred while he was en route to a government event. The aircraft disappeared from radar and was later found crashed with no survivors. Chilima’s death represents a significant loss for Malawi, given his influential role and the potential he had for the country’s future leadership.
