Cdedi backs plane crash external investigators calls

 Centre for Democracy and Economic Development Initiatives (Cdedi) has backed calls for the Malawi Government to solicit the assistance of external investigators to probe the plane crash which killed Vice-President Saulos Chilima and eight others.

In a statement on Thursday, Cdedi executive director Sylvester Namiwa proposed that the German Government, where the Malawi Defence Force (MDF) plane was manufactured, should be the first point of call.

He said: “We trust the government will act with the speed the matter deserves, thereby not forcing other affected quarters to intervene in the search for that desirable assistance for Malawians, particularly families of the deceased, to find a satisfying closure on this tragedy.”

Governance analyst Henry Chingaipe also told The Nation on Tuesday that any investigation into the crash must be carried out by independent experts.

Addressing the media in Lilongwe on Thursday, MDF Commander General Paul Velentino Phiri said MDF has instituted a board of inquiry of MDF personnel and an ex-officio from the Civil Aviation Authority to investigate the circumstances that led to the crash.

Chilima and eight others were found dead on Tuesday after the Dornier 228-202K aircraft crashed in Mzimba District on Monday on its way to Mzuzu from Lilongwe.