FDD President Edith Nawakwi has said that there is something seriously wrong with the planes our decorated men and women at ZAF are using. In A statement released to the media, the FDD president said that Zambia could not afford to be losing highly qualified human resource in such a fashion. Ms Nawakwi gave the example of the late General Muliokela who was a distinguished Pilot of international repute and an instructor on seven different types of aircrafts, and rated category ‘A’ endorsed for Very Very Important Persons (VVIP).
Below is the full statement
FDD PRESS STATEMENT ON THE CONTINUED ZAF ACCIDENTS
The continued accidents involving our Zambia Air Force (ZAF) personnel can no longer be swept and draped under the flag of our land while we create an undying sorrow and anguish to the children and families of our fallen heroes.
Looking at the nature and occurrences of these accidents, we feel compelled to think that there is something seriously wrong with the planes our decorated men and women at ZAF are using. We are alive to the fact that due to the nature of their job and duty of gallant men and women in uniform, they may never come out in the open to tell us that the nation is maybe failing them in its sacred duty to provide them with the right tools to work with. This is why we as a political party are seriously calling for the Minister of Defense to make a Ministerial Statement to Parliament on the cause of these accidents and to inform the nation what measures the government is taking in protecting the precious lives of the patriots that we have continued to lose to accidents.
On 27th April,1993, the nation lost the entire national soccer team and crew when a DHC-5D Buffalo Plane belonging to ZAF crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the shores of Gabon and the nation still does not know what exactly happened. On 12th March, 2013, we lost one of our finest pilots in the name of Major Misapa Mukupa when the ZAF Harbin Z-G helicopter he was flying crash landed at City Airport. On 23rd February, 2013, one of the ZAF pilots was forced to execute a precautionary landing at Kohima Baracks due to a faulty power regulator and on Monday, May 19, 2014, we lost Major-General Muliokela Muliokela and Colonel Brian Mweene in another ZAF accident.
The training and competence of these gallant men and women cannot be questioned. General Muliokela was a distinguished Pilot of international repute and an instructor on seven different types of aircrafts. He was rated category ‘A’ endorsed for Very Very Important Persons (VVIP). Col Mweene was a highly trained pilot who minted the distinguished Flying, Africa Union, United Nations and Commissioning medals.
Surely as a nation we cannot continue to lose such highly qualified human resource in such a fashion. We wish to reiterate our call for the Minister of Defense to give a comprehensive Ministerial Statement to Parliament on the cause of these accidents. We further demand for the public release of the Report of the Board of Inquiry which was constituted to investigate the circumstances of the crash that killed Major Misapa Mukupa on last year’s youth day.
Prepared and issued by:
Edith Z. Nawakwi
FDD President
I don’t trust HH
Thanks
I don`t trust him too
Thanks
Me neither.
Thanks
Nakwikwi you were in government. Did you replace ZAF planes at the time?
I trust him as he is not a washed up recycled old politician like all that has been. We have to give him a chance this time round.
Even me my dear I don’t trust
Nawakwi says some thing , you PF imbeciles point a finger at HH. Of course, we know that HH is man of the man of the moment in Zambian politics thats why most of you PF minions are troubled by him. He does not make you and your mad president sleep well.
Nawakwi and most recycled politicians I will not trust because the have been in power before , serving the failed regimes. So what can these people do differently now that they failed to do when they had a chance to do it.
Viva UPND and HH. Our only hope and help.
Well said Mrs Edith Hambulo.
Yes this worthy news! Thought provoking and insightful! Not the gossip/ ichibwanse from former/wayward “father” Bwalya. This woman opposition politician is better than her male peers. Good of you Edith!
Nawakwi is more beautiful than Christina Sata.
By the way, where did we acquire these planes from? It appears they may be in the country on a test run. I seriously hope our men and women in uniform are not guinea pigs per se!!
@St. Jude
They were probably bought from or donated by the Soviet Republics, Bulgaria, Romania, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia in KK days. I always live in constant trepidation, scared that Zambia hasn’t, I mean have we got equipment worth boasting about? in the forces?
How does HH come in picture or its the usual yap, i thought this is by honourable Nawakwi?
@the economist,some bloggers are infused with a chip in their brain that only activate as HH whenever a political statement is made.no dignity on their party as long as they get ka pay for comments
Let us consider a few things first. This was a training flight, from reports that we have been allowed to read. I would love to know whether this was a factor in the crash; whether pilot error came into play as the instruction was going on. Secondly, a plane is as good as its maintenance plan (I still see DC-9s flying about as fit as a bull). You cannot issue a statement that attempts to liken a road vehicle to an air plane; there must be some technical backing to advance your statement a little further. Other than that, this is viewed as politicking.
VIVA!! Nawakwi,,. You sound so smart. U r more of an opposition leader than HH. Keep pushing mama..
how does h h get involved in this subject, empty vessels, stick to the story, the country should be asking how this fatal plane crash occured instead of finger pointing, what sort of maintanance engineers do we have is what we should be asking not pointing at people who have nothing to do with the zaf planes; grow up people the country is going back in time with people making sensless opinions;
We’ve never released the Gabon disaster report. Most likely the answers to that tragedy has relevance to present tragedies.Just why should someone be so cruel as not to release the report? The nation needs to know.
Just go to WikiLeaks. You will get anything you want there. The world has moved on.
I thnk hh has failed 2 impress the Zambian pipo.. at the moment of all the opposition leaders its only Nawakwi of FDD who is talking sense. She brings out valid points. I really like her style of politics. About Engineers, my guy don’t blame Engineers b4 getting da facts. From the look of things u jst hate Engineers.
Why bother about HH if you think he has failed to inspire people? You are subconsciously admitting feeling the heat from the man’s popularity…
let us be serious. in the first place nawakwi is one of the resyicled politian we have in this country she failed many things in mmd. hh is still clean unless you want to make him dirty therefore you dont want to accept his mounting popularity how do you bring him in this issue nawakwi is talking about . of course nawakwi must ask herslf what did mmd do to improve zaf if not she also quilifies as useless politian viva hh go forward 2016 is nearby everyone is thinking about you that is good.
Madam Nawakwi kindly consider the following and 3.wait for the investigating team to finish its work to early to comment
1.We have the personnel to inspect and maintain the planes before Pilots take responsibility
2.Safety rules:If its not safe do not attempt ,period.
3.Bad weather
4.External factors: birds
They are other factors that can bring a plane down:
-Human error
-Excitement
-Failure to observe safety rules and procedures this is common to well experienced personnel.
-Bad habits -be on the phone,laughing
-Marital issues
-Hang over
-Anxiety
-Personal issues
-Suicide
-Settling personal scores
-Satan the accuser
The same planes have been used hundred of times.Is it lack of maintenance,incompetence, which ever the case Pilots have the final decision to make
Madam Nawakwi kindly consider the following and let us wait for the investigating team to finish its work, to early to comment
1.We have the personnel to inspect and maintain the planes before Pilots take responsibility
2.Safety rules:If its not safe do not attempt ,period.
3.Bad weather
4.External factors: birds
They are other factors that can bring a plane down:
-Human error
-Excitement
-Failure to observe safety rules and procedures this is common to well experienced personnel.
-Bad habits -be on the phone,laughing
-Marital issues
-Hang over
-Anxiety
-Personal issues
-Suicide
-Settling personal scores
-Satan the accuser
The same planes have been used hundred of times.Is it lack of maintenance,incompetence, which ever the case Pilots have the final decision to make
Edith is right.Our men and women in uniform are flying in death traps bcoz the PF govt has cut back on maintenance.
Your Excellency you omitted another crash recently in Livingstone, just before the Muliokela one. MHSREP, it’s annoying that a man of that status as mentioned by Her Excellency could not be accorded a state funeral but a football fan, who never even played football, could get national mourning. Do we need to belong to certain tribes??!!
ZAF needs a forensic audit by retired well trained zaf personel.Zambia needs an independent accident and incident directorate as per icao annex 13.the plane was civilian what were they doing in a civil plane?but as usual the report will just be done and closed with no implementation of what caused the accident we have too many jokers in this country hence the state of the nation today