Malawi presidential plane flight crew detained in Botswana

President Lazarus Chakwera  who last week endured a  seven-hour delay on his journey back from South Africa which included “vague security reasons” for thorough checks of the presidential plane had another damage to his dignity after his trip from Botswana on Friday  shrouded with controversy of the flight crew being detained.

Botswana authorities detained for more than six hours the presidential plane Malawi Airlines employees  due to lack of Covid-19 certificate.

Chakwera arrived in Botswana  Friday morning but the crew on a flight that flew the Malawi leader were left stranded at the airport in Gaberone as they were  denied to disembark from the plane due to their failure to produce Covid-19 certificates as required in that country.

The stranded seven employees included four Cabin Crew, an engineer and two pilots.

The crew was denied access to the airport terminal.

A source said all this was due to their company’s  -Malawi Airlines – negligence as they took it for granted because it was a  day return trip.

“It is more worrying that when you switch off all the systems of a plane after landing, there is always humid inside the plane as all the cooling system is also switched off. The crew were baking in the plane,” the source said.

Malawi Airlines Spokesperson Joseph Josiah could not immediately be drawn into commenting on the development, saying he needed to gather information.

Chakwera travelled to attend the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) Extraordinary Troika Summit of the Organ, on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation, in Gaborone Botswana.

The meeting iwas being chaired by the Chairperson of the SADC Organ Dr Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe Masisi, President of the Republic of Botswana.