UTM Party secretary general Patricia Kaliati says the party is not happy with the letter which presidential contender Dalitso Kabambe has written party president Michael Usi asking him to push for a commission of inquiry into the June 10 2024 plane crash.
In a letter dated October 2 2024, Kabambe wants Usi, in his capacity as the country's Vice-President, to engage President Lazarus Chakwera to expedite the process of instituting a commission of inquiry into events surrounding the plane crash that claimed the life of UTM Party founding president and the country's Vice-President Saulos Chilima and eight others in Nthungwa on the Nkhata Bay side of Viphya Plantation.
However, in an interview yesterday, Kaliati said Kabambe needed to understand that UTM Party already wrote President Chakwera on the matter because it is his office that can institute a commission of inquiry and not that of the Vice-President.
"Maybe some people have not bought the knowledge that the President of this country is Lazarus Chakwera. As a party, we communicated directly to the President about this matter," said Kaliati.
She described Kabambe's letter to Usi as a 'friendly letter' between the two UTM Party presidential hopefuls.
Office of the Vice-President director of communications Pilirani Phiri yesterday confirmed that the office received Kabambe's letter.
"The letter was indeed delivered to the Office of the Vice- President. It will be taken to the attention of His Honour, the Vice- President," he said.
In his letter, Kabambe said: "I believe it is your duty [as the country's Vice-President] to ensure that this inquiry takes place, as it is in the best interest of our entire nation, especially as you assume the role and responsibilities as the direct successor of the late Dr. Saulos Klaus Chilima."
Under Section 89(1)(g) of the Constitution and Section 2(1) of the Commissions of Inquiry Act, the President is mandated to appoint commissions of inquiry into matters of public interest.
Commenting on the issue, political analyst Ernest Thindwa said there seems to be lack of clarity on why Kabambe decided to write Usi on the matter.
He said: "The propensity to exploit the death of Vice- President Saulos Chilima has been evident among individual and institutional political actors since the demise of SKC.
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"The fact that both Kabambe and Usi are in the UTM Party and lack of clarity on the capacity in which the former is writing to the Vice-President to demand a commission of inquiry does not help Kabambe's cause."
Another political pundit Chimwemwe Tsitsi said the fact that the letter was leaked connotes that someone between the two UTM Party presidential aspirants wants to gain political mileage.
"We cannot be very wrong to say Kabambe had wanted to gain some mileage out of this call by putting pressure on Usi as the current UTM leader," he said.
