A seven-year-old child is dead. Another is fighting for his life. A third is nursing serious injuries.
And the man at the centre of it all, Zomba City Mayor and DPP Deputy Director of Youths Christopher Jana, is walking and driving free, shielded by a police force rotting from the head down under Inspector General Merlyn Yolamu.
The carnage happened Tuesday evening on the M1 Road in Kasungu.
According to eyewitnesses, Jana was cruising from Mzuzu towards the central region when his vehicle hit the three children. The victims, all under the age of ten, were reportedly crossing the road when the speeding vehicle hit them.
A seven-year-old boy died from his injuries, another child was rushed to Kasungu District Hospital in critical condition, and the third also suffered severe injuries but was treated as an outpatient.
Kasungu District has confirmed attending to the two children and the death of the other boy.
What has sparked the most anger is not only the tragedy itself but the alleged attempts to shield Jana from legal consequences. Multiple sources within Kasungu allege that the Mayor has been working behind the scenes to bribe police officers and suppress both the case and public information about the incident.
Relatives of the victims told this publication that they have not received any official police briefing, nor has Jana been taken into custody for questioning. They claim they have been pressured to “settle the matter quietly,” raising suspicions that a deal has been struck with law enforcement.
“Someone’s child has died, and instead of justice, there is money changing hands. If it were an ordinary citizen, they would be in jail right now,” said a relative of the deceased.
Police authorities, including the Kasungu Station command and the spokesperson Joseph Kachikho, have remained conspicuously silent on the matter. No statement has been issued, and no charges have been filed days after the fatal accident.
Kachikho when contacted could not confirm or deny the incident.
Critics say this silence is symptomatic of a deeper rot within the police service, a rot allegedly tolerated and perpetuated by Inspector General (IG) Merlyn Yolamu.
“Under Yolamu, bribery has become normalized. If you have the right political connections, the law does not apply to you. We are seeing this every day, and this case is the latest proof,” claimed a senior law enforcement insider, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Some insiders suspect that the IG herself may be indirectly involved or is deliberately ignoring such misconduct due to political pressures, especially when it involves DPP officials and financiers.
The Jana accident scandal is not an isolated incident. Police insiders reveal that there has been a growing list of cases where politically connected individuals have escaped accountability after road accidents, fraud cases, or even violent crimes, all allegedly facilitated by police officers willing to take bribes in exchange for silence.
Multiple reports have surfaced of officers in various districts “losing” files, mishandling evidence, or deliberately stalling investigations involving ruling or opposition political figures with deep pockets.
One human rights activist demanded that the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) and the Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC) launch independent investigations into both the accident and the alleged bribery.
“This is not just about Jana, this is about whether Malawians can trust the police to serve the people or whether the uniform is now just a cover for organised corruption,” said the activist.
As the grieving family in Kasungu awaits justice, and as the injured children fight for their lives in hospital, the case has become a litmus test for IG Yolamu’s leadership.
Will she act decisively against one of the country’s most politically connected mayors, or will silence and selective justice prevail?
For now, the Malawi Police Service’s credibility continues to crumble.
