By Pemphero Malimba
The Public Accounts Committee (Pac) of Parliament is this morning expected to meet former Secretary to the President and Cabinet Coleen Zamba in the on-going inquiry into the purchase of Amaryllis Hotel by the Public Service Pension Trust Fund (PSPTF).
Zamba was expected to appear before the committee about two weeks ago but the meeting did not take place as she did not turn up.
Pac Chairperson Steven Baba Malondera told reporters in Lilongwe on Wednesday last week that Parliament had engaged various stakeholders to ensure Zamba’s appearance before the committee.
According to Malondera, Zamba had gone out of the country after getting clearance from the courts.
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“She [Zamba] travelled. This is not under our control. When she was set to travel, she got relief from the court because her bail condition entails that before she leaves this country, she needs to get comfort from the court. So, she did that and what we have done, as Parliament, is to ask those relevant institutions which gave her [the clearance] to furnish us with enough documents and see how Parliament can come in to ensure that she comes and appears before the Public Accounts Committee,” he said.
He told The Daily Times yesterday that the committee had scheduled a meeting with Zamba at 9:30 this morning.
“[The] meeting is tomorrow at 9:30am at Parliament [Building]. We dispatched the orders [and] so, to us, the meeting is on tomorrow, Monday, [at] 9:30am,” he said.
A number of individuals who had appeared before the committee mentioned Zamba in the ongoing inquiry.
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For example, the latest individual to appear before the committee—namely Attorney General Frank Mbeta—told committee members that he wondered why Zamba was taking part in the affairs of purchasing the hotel [before government transition last year].
“I looked at the Trust Deed [on which the fund is founded upon]. There is nowhere the OPC [Office of the President and Cabinet] is mentioned. That’s not found in the Trust Deed. The power rests in the hands of the trustees of the fund,” he said.
Mbeta denied authorising the purchase of the Hotel.
He accused the media of misrepresenting his role in the deal, saying reports presented to him by the Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) and the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) had highlighted several prudential issues that required attention.
He said he advised the fund to assess the risks associated with the transaction before reaching a decision.
“My office is not mandated to authorise any commercial transaction. If an Attorney General authorises a commercial transaction, it would absorb the powers that are placed in boards and the people placed in the boards. The role of the Attorney General is to advise [on] what the law says [and] not how business is run,” he said.
After Mbeta’s appearance last week, Malondera said committee members had managed to inquire from 90 percent of the respondents.
“We are somewhere around 90 percent and the report is already being generated,” he said.
He indicated that Pac would ensure that people mentioned in the inquiry appear before the committee.
“Everyone who has been mentioned in the inquiry has to appear before the committee and that is what we want and what we will do to make sure that it is done,” he said.
The inquiry follows controversy over the hotel’s sale after the central bank ordered the PSPTF to withdraw its purchase agreement with the property owner, Yusuf Investments Limited.
In a recent statement, RBM Governor and Registrar of Financial Institutions George Partridge faulted the fund’s board for proceeding with the transaction despite being advised against it.
According to a statement, dated November 14, 2025, the central bank instructed the board to suspend all transactions related to the acquisition of Amaryllis Hotel until further notice.
However, the fund is reported to have gone ahead with the deal, paying about K90 billion to the sellers.
