Episode 4 of the Mwanza ‘war’ of October 1967, has aired tonight at MIJ FM. In this Episode 4, Major General Namwali Who fought in the war on the Malawi’s security forces side and Frank Jiya who was on the opposite side of the ‘rebels’ provide conflicting testimonies pertaining to the intensity of the ‘war’ particularly with regards to casualties and deaths on the side of the Malawi’s security forces.
This remains an area that requires further probing by historians and scholars of security/military studies on Malawi.
Suffice to say that the ‘rebels’ were found with deadly weapons that the military forces in Malawi didn’t have at that particular time such as automatic rifles and rocket launcher.
Below is a testimony from a vetaran social-political commentator Mzee Cuthbert Kachale who claims to have received hidden details about the whole Mwanza ‘war’ from his own brother late Ken Mfune who was then the Clerk of Parliament:
“These were Ian Smith’s helicopter gunships which shot Yatuta and Mwahimba. The Ndache story was just an implant. My brother told me that after the Mwanza war, Malawi Government paid the Rhodesia Government huge sums of money for its participation.
On the first day of the operation, the BBC reported that Malawi Army suffered around 500 casualties.
Major General Namwali cannot reveal military secrets even if he is now retired. Once a soldier, always a soldier. The military keep their ranks till death. Right now, despite many decades of retirement, should war break out, Major General Namwali will be required to take up arms and fight.
There was so much propaganda by Malawi Government. First you cannot declare war and expect no casualties. Malawi Army suffered a heavy toll. Those of us who were at ground zero got the information that wives and families of government soldiers that died in action were being repatriated to their homes under the cover story that since there was war earlier in Israel, Malawi soldiers had been sent to fight on the side of the Israeli Defence forces where they perished .
In spite of all this Dr. Banda lied that not even a single soldier of the Malawi Army was killed or wounded.
Malawi News published a photo of Captain Ansley Ndovie wielding a revolver or handgun that was used to ‘scare’ the insurgents or the Yatuta Army.
The mainly rural Malawians bought the story that Yatuta Chisiza and his guerrillas got scared of Ansley’s revolver.
The truth remains that the 16 man guerrilla army caused heavy casualties. Those who surrendered did so because of the air power of Ian Smith’s helicopter gunships.”
To listen to this Episode 4, please click here
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Feedback: p.chinguwo@historyofmalawi.com
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