President Lazarus Chakwera’s recent statement that the report on the plane crash that killed former Vice President Saulos Klaus Chilima and eight others is ready has been contradicted by the government’s latest update.
Recently, Chakwera told an international media outlet: “There is no holdup per se. And so once that report has come to the necessary offices, we will make sure that it is released. When those people came, they also had the privilege, I would say, but for us, it was an honour to have the preliminary report, even assure the family what they had done and that they were going to prepare a preliminary one before a conclusive one.”
This statement prompted Leader of Opposition George Chaponda to ask the government to release the report. However, Moses Kunkuyu, Minister of Information and Digitalisation, stated that the investigation by Germany’s Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation (BFU) is still ongoing, and no official report has been submitted.
Kunkuyu said in a statement, “As it is, the Bureau has not yet produced this Interim Report, but the Bureau has communicated to the Government that it will publish this Interim Report on its website this Friday, August 30, 2024. As such, as the President said in his interview with DW, the Government will alert the public as soon as the Bureau informs the relevant Government offices that the report has been published.”
This contradiction raises questions about the government’s transparency and communication on the matter. President Chakwera’s statement had given hope to the bereaved families and the public that the truth behind the crash would finally be revealed.
