MDF soldier dies in car accident
A senior Malawi Defence Force (MDF) soldier, Captain Hastings Kasuzumira Banda, died in a car accident just after Malosa in Zomba on Friday evening as he was returning from Salima.
Another officer, Private Thomas Makaika, sustained serious injuries and was admitted to Zomba Central Hospital intensive care unit (ICU), according to MDF spokesperson Paul Chiphwanya.
A third officer, Major Gausi, survived with minor injuries and has since been discharged from hospital.
Chiphwanya said the car in which the soldiers were travelling in, collided with another car which was heading to Mangochi at about 6pm.
The occupants of the other vehicle, a Ford Ranger, were South Africans who also sustained injuries. According to Chiphwanya, the Ford Ranger left its lane and hit the side of the soldiers’ car.
The MDF spokesperson disclosed that the three were coming from a three-month training of officers at Malawi Armed Forces College (Mafco) in Salima where Kasuzumira Banda and Gausi were instructors.
The deceased, according to another source in the MDF, was operations officer on a peace keeping mission in DRC from September 2014 to May 2015.
Chiphwanya said the MDF has lost an able officer who was dedicated and trustworthy.
Chiphwanya moaned: “We got the news with deep shock and regrets. This is a painful loss.
“You know what it takes to train a military man.
“This is a big loss to us and to the nation. We extend our condolences to his family and we will put them in our prayers.”n
