Yusuf Investment Limited (YIL) on Wednesday mounted a robust legal challenge against the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), arguing the parliamentary watchdog has no legal authority to investigate a private company over the sale of Amaryllis Hotel to the Public Service Pension Trust Fund (PSPTF).
In a detailed preliminary objection, the company’s legal counsel, Gabriel Kambale, told the committee that its powers under the Public Audit Act are strictly limited to public money and public institutions.
He argued on two main fronts: that PAC has no jurisdiction over YIL, and that the scope of the inquiry—reaching into commercial contracts and bank records—exceeds what the law allows.
“There is no provision—express or implied—that extends this mandate to the regulation or investigation of private commercial entities acting in their own capacity,” Kambale submitted. “Yusuf Investment Limited is not a public body. It is not controlled by Government. It is not audited by the Auditor General. It does not handle public funds. On that basis alone, jurisdiction of this Committee does not arise.”
The development is the latest twist in a probe that has already seen the committee reopen its inquiry after objections from government and key witnesses who said they were not heard the first time.
Kambale also took aim at the committee’s reliance on Parliamentary Standing Orders, which give PAC powers to summon any person and demand documents.
He said these rules are only procedural and cannot create substantive jurisdiction. “Standing Orders are purely procedural. They derive from, and remain subordinate to, the Constitution and the Public Audit Act. Any attempt to rely on them to compel disclosure from a private entity, absent a clear link to public funds, is ultra vires and unlawful,” Kambale said.
He warned that reading the rules differently would give the committee “unlimited investigative authority over any private citizen or company in the Republic, without statutory safeguards”.
The lawyer described the committee’s request—which included all correspondence, valuation methodologies, full contractual terms, payment structures, and all financial flows—as a “wide-ranging forensic examination”.
“With due respect, that is not targeted clarification. It is an audit, a regulatory investigation, and civil discovery all at once. None of those functions fall within the statutory remit of this Committee,” he said.
Kambale argued that if the committee has concerns over the transaction, it should focus on the public institution and its officers, not the private counterparty.
“Yusuf Investment Limited is merely a private counterparty. To subject it to direct parliamentary investigation would collapse the distinction between public oversight and private autonomy. It would also expose all private actors dealing with Government to open-ended and intrusive scrutiny,” he said.
Kambale also cautioned the committee over its decision to summon National Bank of Malawi, which holds accounts for YIL. He said no provision in the Public Audit Act authorises PAC to compel a private bank to disclose customer information.
“If NBM comes here and discloses information prejudicial to YIL, that will expose them to significant legal liability. It will also erode the confidence that right-minded business persons place in the bank,” he warned.
In a further legal argument, Kambale challenged PAC’s assumption of jurisdiction over the Public Service Pension Trust Fund itself. He submitted that the Fund is established under the Trusts Incorporation Act and governed by the Pension Act as a trust with separate legal personality.
He said once Government contributes funds, those contributions lose their character as public money. “Any Government contributions, once lawfully remitted, become subject to private trust obligations. The Fund is placed outside the statutory audit chain. To purport to exercise oversight over the Fund itself is to collapse the clear legal distinction between State resources and beneficiary-owned pension assets,” Kambale said.
The company prayed that the committee uphold the objection and decline jurisdiction over Yusuf Investment Limited, confine its inquiry strictly to the conduct of the public entity, and limit any engagement with YIL to voluntary, narrowly defined factual clarification. Kambale reminded the committee that YIL had already provided a comprehensive written account of the sale on 24 April 2026. He also reserved the company’s right to seek judicial review of the committee’s decisions.
The PAC inquiry into the Amaryllis Hotel purchase has been turbulent. The committee earlier cancelled a hearing with former Secretary to the President and Cabinet Colleen Zamba, who cited medical treatment abroad and an ongoing court case.
Other witnesses summoned include Chief Secretary Justin Saidi and former Reserve Bank governor McDonald Mafuta Mwale. PAC had initially concluded its inquiry and produced a report, but Government and other stakeholders objected to its tabling, arguing that key figures had not been heard.
The committee reopened the inquiry, leading to the current proceedings. The purchase of Amaryllis Hotel by PSPTF has remained in the public eye, with critics questioning whether the hotel was bought at fair value and whether pension funds should have been committed without broader scrutiny.
PAC vice-chairperson Tulinje Muluzi was not available for comment yesterday.
