Chibvomelezi FM, Ngabu, Chikwawa (2026)

02/07/2026

The Evangelical Lutheran Development Services (ELDS) has stepped up efforts to curb the spread of cholera and other hygiene-related diseases in Traditional Authority Ngabu, Chikwawa, by rehabilitating boreholes and donating hygiene materials to 10 schools.

Speaking during the handover, ELDS Project Officer Sautso Wande said the organisation has restored boreholes to improve access to safe water while providing water storage drums, buckets and handwashing soap to schools as part of measures to promote hygiene amid rising cholera cases in the area.

Wande said the intervention seeks to strengthen handwashing practices, improve sanitation and reduce the spread of waterborne diseases, noting that schools play a critical role in shaping lifelong hygiene behaviours among learners and their communities.

Chikwawa District School Health and Nutrition Coordinator Charles Muyanika described the support as timely, saying access to safe water and handwashing facilities is essential in protecting learners from preventable diseases and ensuring a healthy learning environment.

He urged schools and communities to safeguard the donated items and embrace proper hygiene practices, stressing that the fight against cholera requires collective responsibility.

The intervention is being implemented under the Integrated Emergency Response for the El Niño Drought Affected Communities in Malawi project by the Evangelical Lutheran Development Services (ELDS), with financial support from Oxfam Malawi through Global Affairs of Canada, demonstrating the partners' commitment to improving public health and building resilient communities in cholera-prone areas.

By Blessings Melo

30/05/2026

Health experts in the country have expressed concern over the growing threat posed by illegal private clinics, warning that people who seek treatment from such facilities risk their lives in the hands of unqualified and unregulated operators.

The concern follows the arrest of a 30-year-old man, Francis Kagome, by Chikwawa Police for allegedly operating a private clinic without the required licence and possessing assorted medical drugs without authorization.

Speaking in an interview with Chibvomelezi FM, Chikwawa District Police spokesperson Dickson Matemba said the suspect was arrested following a tip-off from concerned members of the public who reported that a clinic was operating illegally at Maperera Trading Centre.

Matemba said police officers who stormed the facility recovered a large quantity of medicines and medical supplies, including antibiotics, HIV testing kits, pregnancy testing kits and other drugs whose storage, handling and distribution require strict regulation.

Commenting on the dangers posed by such illegal health facilities, health rights activist George Jobe says unlicensed medical clinics endanger public health by exposing patients to misdiagnosis, improper treatment, unsafe drug administration and medicines that may not meet approved medical standards.

Echoing those concerns, Matemba said the arrest should serve as a warning to individuals operating illegal health facilities, stressing that police will continue intensifying operations against unlicensed clinics across the district to protect communities and safeguard public health.

The incident exposes the dangers of underground medical practices that operate beyond regulatory oversight in Chikwawa, often leaving patients vulnerable to potentially life-threatening consequences.

By Blessings Melo

27/05/2026

A suspected criminal syndicate posing as public transport operators has been arrested in Chikwawa after allegedly robbing a businessman of K1.8 million in broad daylight.

According to Chikwawa District Police spokesperson Dickson Matemba, the four suspects were arrested at Thabwa Roadblock after the victim reported that he had been tricked into boarding a Nissan Dualis that was falsely operating as a passenger vehicle to Blantyre.

Matemba said the suspects allegedly locked the businessman inside the vehicle moments after departure before stealing cash from his bag and dumping him along the road.

The suspects Mike Chiphazi, Steven James, Bester Jere and Enock Banda were later intercepted after officers noticed that the vehicle was attempting to divert from the M1 onto the East Bank Road, a sudden manoeuvre that immediately raised suspicion and prompted a swift police response.

Matemba said police recovered the entire stolen K1.8 million and that the suspects later admitted to the crime during interrogation.

The incident has once again highlighted the growing threat of criminals disguising themselves as transport operators to prey on ordinary passengers and business people traveling with cash on major highways.

By Blessings Melo

24/05/2026

Hours after the road accident that occurred in Ntcheu involving a passenger bus traveling toward Lilongwe and a 3-tonne lorry heading toward Chingeni, the scene has now settled with emergency responses gradually winding down.

Eyewitnesses say that shortly after the crash, panic gripped the area as bystanders rushed to assist the injured before ambulances and police arrived.

Several victims were quickly transported to Ntcheu District Hospital for urgent medical attention.

Ntcheu District Hospital spokesperson Stella Kawalala has confirmed that four people are confirmed as casualties, with one sustaining serious head injuries and another with a leg injury.

The two are expected to be referred to Kamuzu Central Hospital in Lilongwe for further management.

As time has passed since the incident, authorities are now focusing on clearing the wreckage from the road to restore traffic flow.

Meanwhile, authorities are still working to establish the identities of those affected, while investigations continue to determine the exact cause of the collision.

By Blessings Melo

22/05/2026

Malawi’s banking sector is entering a new era of digital identity verification following the National Registration Bureau’s (NRB) rollout of an advanced system linking financial institutions directly to the national identity database.

The move is expected to transform how banks onboard customers, verify identities and combat fraud, as institutions increasingly adopt real-time digital verification tools powered by biometric technology.

NRB Principal Secretary Patrick Machika said the integration model introduces a more secure and efficient approach to customer verification by incorporating fingerprint and facial recognition capabilities.

Machika explained that the system allows banks to instantly authenticate customer details against the national database, strengthening Digital Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures while reducing the risks of identity fraud and impersonation.

“This integration enhances trust in digital financial services because verification is done in real time using highly secure biometric data,” said Machika.

The development marks a significant shift from Malawi’s traditionally manual banking processes, where customers were often required to travel long distances to bank branches, queue for hours and complete bulky paperwork to open accounts or update records.

Standard Bank Malawi is among the first financial institutions to implement the technology through a newly launched digital onboarding platform connected to the NRB system.

The innovation is expected to improve financial inclusion by making banking services more accessible, especially for people in remote areas who previously faced challenges accessing physical branches.

Experts say the initiative also aligns with Malawi’s broader digital transformation agenda aimed at modernising public services and promoting a cash-lite economy driven by secure digital platforms.

By Blessings Melo

20/05/2026

A parliamentary inquiry into the military aircraft crash that killed former Malawi Vice President Saulos Chilima and eight others has intensified after members of a special parliamentary committee on Tuesday conducted an inspection of the crash site in the Nthungwa area of the Viphya Forest in Nkhatabay District.

Chairperson of the committee, Walter Nyamilandu Manda, said observations and testimonies gathered from the site visit would play a crucial role in guiding the committee’s investigations and the eventual compilation of its official report on the circumstances surrounding the tragedy.

During the visit, aviation experts from the Malawi Defence Force provided a detailed account of events leading to the fatal crash, including operational and technical aspects linked to the aircraft’s movements before the accident occurred.

The military officials also outlined the challenges encountered during the search and recovery mission, explaining why efforts to locate the wreckage and victims took considerably longer than expected.

Among the factors highlighted were difficult terrain, poor visibility within the dense Viphya Forest and adverse weather conditions that complicated rescue and investigative operations.

The parliamentary probe comes amid sustained public demand for transparency, accountability and clarity over one of Malawi’s deadliest aviation disasters in recent years.

Political and social Commentator Humphreys Mvula says the inquiry is expected to scrutinise not only the immediate causes of the crash, but also broader concerns surrounding aviation safety protocols, emergency response preparedness and communication systems within state security institutions.

The findings of the committee are likely to attract significant national attention, with many Malawians hoping the investigation will provide long-awaited answers and recommendations aimed at preventing similar tragedies in future.

By Blessings Melo

20/05/2026

Julius Malema has secured a significant legal victory after the High Court in Johannesburg ruled in his favour in a defamation case against media personality Ngizwe Mchunu, reinforcing the judiciary’s stance on accountability for unsubstantiated public allegations.

The court ordered Mchunu to issue a public apology, retract all defamatory statements made against Malema and pay punitive legal costs, a rare and severe legal sanction often imposed where the court finds conduct to have been reckless, malicious or grossly irresponsible.

The ruling stems from allegations made by Mchunu accusing Malema of receiving financial backing from Nigerian drug traffickers and shielding undocumented foreign nationals in South Africa.

However, the court found that the claims were unsupported by credible evidence and had caused substantial reputational harm to the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader.

Legal analysts say the judgment sends a strong warning against the growing culture of misinformation, political defamation and reckless commentary on digital and public platforms, particularly in politically charged environments where allegations can rapidly influence public perception without factual verification.

The decision also highlights the increasing willingness of South African courts to protect constitutional rights to dignity and reputation while balancing them against freedom of expression; a principle that remains central in the country’s democratic legal framework.

Observers note that the punitive costs order is especially significant, as courts typically reserve such penalties for cases where litigants are found to have abused public platforms or acted in bad faith, making the ruling not only a personal victory for Malema but also a broader legal precedent on responsible public discourse.

By Blessings Melo

20/05/2026

Malawi’s continued ranking among the world’s poorest nations has once again exposed deep-rooted governance failures, weak economic planning and decades of underinvestment in critical public sectors, analysts say.

A newly released United Nations development report has ranked Malawi as the 22nd poorest country globally for the third consecutive year, underscoring the country’s persistent struggle to improve living standards despite repeated policy interventions and international support.

The report indicates that countries occupying the lower end of the global development index including Malawi continue to face severe challenges in education, healthcare delivery, infrastructure development and economic productivity, factors that remain central to the country’s slow pace of development.

Governance commentator George Chaima said the findings reflect years of misplaced national priorities and poor leadership accountability.

According to Chaima, successive governments have largely focused on political survival and personal interests at the expense of long-term national development strategies capable of transforming the lives of ordinary Malawians.

Economic and social analyst Milward Tobiasi observed that the report should serve as a wake-up call for policymakers, warning that Malawi still faces enormous structural and institutional challenges before attaining meaningful economic independence.

The latest ranking also comes at a time when Malawi continues to battle rising inflation, high unemployment, recurring food insecurity, foreign exchange shortages and growing public debt all of which have significantly weakened household incomes and widened poverty levels, particularly in rural communities.

Development experts argue that unless Malawi strengthens public institutions, invests heavily in education and productivity, combats corruption and creates sustainable economic opportunities, the country risks remaining trapped in a cycle of poverty and aid dependency for years to come.

By Blessings Melo

18/05/2026

Chikwawa Police have dismissed as false and misleading reports circulating on social media claiming that officers at Ngabu Police Unit have arrested two siblings over allegations of in**st.

Speaking to Chibvomelezi FM, Chikwawa District Police Spokesperson Dickson Matemba described the story as fabricated and malicious, saying no such arrest has ever been made by police in the district.

According to Matemba, the reports alleging that Enerst Kaitano and his sister Ethel Kaitano were arrested for engaging in sexual activities are entirely untrue and were created by individuals bent on spreading misinformation and damaging people’s reputations.

Matemba further stressed that the entire story was made up, including the photograph circulating online, which he said had been edited and manipulated to portray a false impression as though the allegations were genuine.

He said the innocent family members in the picture have unfairly suffered emotional distress and public embarrassment because of the fake publication.

He has since urged members of the public to ignore the claims, warning that the spread of fake news has the potential to cause unnecessary panic, confusion, and emotional harm to innocent families.

Matemba further appealed to social media users and online publishers to verify information with the Police Public Relations Office before sharing or publishing sensitive stories involving law enforcement matters.

Meanwhile, police have launched investigations aimed at tracing those behind the fake reports, with authorities warning that publishing or circulating false information is a criminal offence punishable under the Electronic Transactions and Cyber Security Act.

The law enforcers have reiterated their commitment to dealing with cyber-related offences and promoting responsible use of social media platforms in the country.

By Blessings Melo

18/05/2026

The reopening of investigations into the Chikangawa plane crash has sparked renewed public interest, with governance and human rights advocates calling for transparency and accountability throughout the process.

The tragic military aircraft crash, which claimed the lives of former Vice President Saulosi Chilima and eight others on June 11, 2024, remains one of Malawi’s most talked-about national disasters.

The accident occurred in the dense Chikangawa Forest and left many Malawians demanding clearer answers surrounding the circumstances of the crash.

Although an earlier commission of inquiry established by the previous administration attributed the accident largely to poor weather conditions, sections of the public questioned the findings, arguing that several concerns were left unresolved.

The current government later pledged to revisit the matter through a fresh independent inquiry aimed at restoring public trust and addressing unanswered questions surrounding the tragedy.

As part of the process, a special parliamentary task force is today expected to begin collecting testimonies and evidence from various stakeholders, including members of the public.

Human rights campaigners have since urged the committee to conduct the exercise with professionalism and independence.

Human Rights Defenders Coalition Chairperson Michael Kayiyatsa emphasized the need for the inquiry to rise above political interests and focus on facts, justice, and national healing.

Kayiyatsa further stressed that the credibility of the process will depend on fairness, transparency, and adherence to democratic principles, saying Malawians deserve a process that inspires confidence and closure following the devastating loss of national leaders and officials.

By Blessings Melo

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