PSPTF secretariat, board conflict in PAC inquiry

The Public Service Pension Trust Fund (PSPTF) secretariat and the fund’s new board gave conflicting accounts on the controversial purchase of Amaryllis Hotel during a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) inquiry that ran into the early hours of yesterday. At the hearing, asset and investment manager Natasha Nkhoma told PAC that the secretariat had withdrawn from the Amaryllis Hotel transaction after concluding it was not a viable investment. She said the fund informed Nico Asset Managers of its decision to pull out on12 February 2024 and asked that Yusuf Investment Limited be notified.

Nkhoma said PSPTF representatives reiterated their position at a meeting convened by the Office of the President and Cabinet on March 6 2024, citing a projected 36‑year payback period, which they considered too long for quick returns. She added the fund was already constructing another hotel a few kilometres from Amaryllis and had invested in Lifestyle Boutique Hotel (formerly Sigelege Hotel). She told the committee that Yusuf Investment Limited threatened legal action for breach of contract, but that legal advisers had indicated the fund had no binding agreement with the firm and would defend any case successfully.

Nkhoma also said the secretariat had been sidelined in key decisions. “We were not allowed to attend a key meeting on 17 November 2025 between the board and the Reserve Bank of Malawi where the hotel purchase was discussed. The secretariat only learned about the purchase price through media reports, as the board did not disclose it,” she said.

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The committee heard that legal services manager Mary Mpango was sent on leave from January 12 2026 and therefore was not involved in the transaction. Nkhoma added that the secretariat never received a draft sale agreement or details on the payment method or the bank used, and did not know who drafted or authorised payments to Yusuf Investment. Chilomoni, Kabula and Nancholi legislator Noel Lipipa (DPP) asked PAC chairperson Steven Baba Malondera to guarantee the safety of secretariat members who testified.

Malondera said he would consult the Speaker of Parliament on how to proceed. Meanwhile, PSPTF board chairperson Chizaso Eric Nyirongo told PAC the previous board had adopted a 2022 investment strategy to expand into tourism, which included acquiring Sigelege Hotel and starting construction of Lifestyle Hotel in Blantyre. He said Nico Asset Managers initially advised that buying Amaryllis was viable but later reversed that advice, citing inadequate due diligence despite it being the asset manager’s responsibility.

Nyirongo alleged Nico may have withdrawn because its parent company was constructing a hotel at Lilongwe Golf Club using funds partly sourced from the pension fund. He accused the previous board of conducting transactions beyond its mandate until November 2025, after that mandate had expired.

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