By Emmanuel Nthambi Matewere
Systematic negligence and delay tactics which in short are synonyms of sabotage are among the greatest evils people use when they want to destroy you, your business, or your dreams.
Having followed the commission of inquiry involving Madame Mary Chilima, Lapkeni, Chimaneni, Joshua Valera, and others, one of the major questions that has consistently been raised concerns how the search and rescue operation was conducted on the day of the crash, considering that the late Saulos Klaus Chilima was the then Vice President of the Republic, together with eight other passengers, most of whom were senior civil servants.
It is well known through various accounts and public discussions that government officials became aware that the aircraft was missing early on, and information about the incident had already begun circulating within official circles.
At the same time, social media and several media houses were reporting that the aircraft carrying the Vice President had gone missing.
There have also been reports that aviation authorities contacted neighbouring countries to establish whether the aircraft had landed outside Malawi.
When those efforts reportedly yielded no results, many concluded that the authorities already knew the aircraft had not reached its destination, particularly given the poor weather conditions later cited by the State.
Despite these developments, many Malawians believe the government’s response was tactically evil and lacked the urgency the situation demanded.
This has raised difficult questions about how the affairs of the Vice President were managed during those critical hours.
I am not suggesting that Chilima would necessarily have survived the crash, but the delay itself deserves careful scrutiny.
Yes, the aircraft crashed, but many remain unconvinced that the search and rescue operation was carried out with the urgency and good faith expected under such circumstances.
To many Malawians, the search and rescue operation only appeared to intensify after the State had concluded that there were no survivors, leading some to question whether every possible effort had been made to find the victims while there was still hope. Died like everyone within the Reverend Chakwera government machinery was saying : Ndege Yachita bwino kugwa. Osamupanga attend, Awona kuti atani.
In life, delay tactics are often underrated, yet they have destroyed individuals, households, institutions, businesses, and have even cost people their lives.
We have seen suppliers deliberately denied timely payments simply to cripple their businesses.
We have seen pensions delayed, leaving orphans and widows to suffer unnecessarily.
We have seen simple passport applications delayed, preventing sick people from accessing life-saving medical treatment abroad.
No one is suggesting that after the crash Malawians expected the late Chilima and the other eight passengers to emerge alive.
What Malawians expected was a government that responded with urgency and seriousness.
Therefore, if there were unnecessary delays in responding to the aircraft crash, that issue deserves continued public examination.
At the very least, people would have found some comfort in knowing that every possible effort had been made, that the victims died while being rushed to Mzuzu Central Hospital or while medical personnel were desperately trying to save their lives.
Instead, many were left with painful questions about whether the response matched the gravity of the tragedy.
A side note: A delay tactic is more evil than a bullet.
A bullet ends a life instantly, but deliberate delay silently suffocates dreams, destroys businesses, weakens institutions, and robs people of opportunities they may never recover.
It leaves victims waiting while time becomes the weapon.
In many cases, people do not die because help was impossible, they die because help came too late.
Delay, when used deliberately, is not merely negligence; it becomes a silent form of injustice.
