Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament has recommended further investigations, legal action, recovery of losses and individual accountability in the controversial K128.7 billion Public Service Pension Trust Fund acquisition of Amaryllis Hotel in Blantyre.
The committee’s inquiry report also demands an urgent restructuring of the fund, noting that the transaction exposed severe failures in fiduciary discipline, governance and institutional oversight.
In a report adopted on March 31 2026 and signed by chairperson Steven Malondera, the committee is set to formally table it in Parliament during the Mid-Year Budget Review Meeting this November.
PAC’s earlier version of the report was dismissed on grounds that it was incomplete because key witnesses, including former Secretary to the President and Cabinet Colleen Zamba, were not interviewed. However, this updated version explicitly identifies specific governance failures, directly targeting institutions and individuals linked to the deal.
“The transaction represented a serious breakdown of fiduciary discipline and a departure from the principles of transparency, accountability and prudence that must govern the management of public pension funds,” the report reads in part.
PAC has recommended deeper investigations into the conduct of Zamba alongside former State Residences Chief of Staff Prince Kapondamgaga, who both attended a crucial March 6 2024 meeting regarding the deal. Former pension fund officials and trustees also face similar scrutiny.
Besides, the committee wants individual accountability assessments for all trustees who approved the transaction, including potential civil liability and asset recovery where negligence or misconduct is established.
The report also sharply questions the commercial viability of the transaction. Initial assessments by FDH Bank plc valued the hotel business at between K26 billion and K35 billion while property valuations placed its market value at roughly K49 billion. Yet, the fund agreed to purchase the asset for K128.7 billion despite managing the pension savings of around 129 000 civil servants.
PAC highlighted that the fund’s investment manager, Nico Asset Managers, withdrew from the deal due to concerns that the transaction lacked adequate technical scrutiny and exposed the fund to severe financial risks. While the fund’s board resolved in January 2024 not to proceed, the transaction was revived.
The committee also faulted the final stages of the acquisition, noting that critical steps were rushed through an “implausibly compressed timeframe.” The sale agreement was signed on November 17 2025, just three days after the Registrar of Financial Institutions issued a stop order.
When contacted yesterday, pension fund spokesperson Yamikani Sekeni said that the controversial decisions were made under the previous regime.
“The governance actions and decisions undertaken during the period of the transaction were conducted under the oversight of the former board of trustees,” he said.
Civil society leaders have welcomed the findings, but urged stiffer enforcement with Centre for Social Accountability and Transparency executive director Willy Kambwandira welcoming the call for criminal proceedings, although he noted the recommendations “fell short of what the public expected”.
Similarly, National Advocacy Platform chairperson Benedicto Kondowe praised the report for framing the scandal as a systemic breakdown of institutional safeguards rather than a simple bad investment.
The Secretary to the Treasury has also been ordered to report back on the progress of implementing the recommendations within 21 days of the report’s adoption by the House.
The controversy centres on the fund, which agreed to purchase Amaryllis Hotel for K128.7 billion despite that prior valuations priced the property at between K26 billion and K49 billion.
