Amaryllis Hotel scandal: ACB acting director Gabriel Chembezi accused of corruption

The Malawi Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Acting Director General, Gabriel Chembezi, has been accused of corruption and attempting to influence a parliamentary inquiry into the Amaryllis Hotel, in conduct described as “unethical and improper”. The ACB boss has since been reported to the Malawi Police and the Attorney General.

The complaint was filed by Chairperson of parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Steven Baba Malondera Kamsiyamo, who alleges that Chembezi made persistent attempts to interfere with the committee’s inquiry into the controversial Amaryllis transaction. 

According to the complaint dated April 22, 2026, Chembezi first contacted Kamsiyamo on March 10 via WhatsApp before arranging a meeting in Lilongwe, where he allegedly sought support to secure his substantive appointment as ACB Director. Kamsiyamo claims that during the meeting, Chembezi asked him to “clear” him in the ongoing inquiry, a request he describes as shocking and inappropriate. 

The document further details a series of follow-up communications, including phone calls and messages, which Kamsiyamo says were aimed at influencing the inquiry. In one instance, Chembezi is alleged to have sought assurances that he would be “protected” during his appearance before the committee. 

The situation is said to have escalated on March 14 when Chembezi allegedly tracked down the PAC chairperson and continued discussions in a moving vehicle, repeatedly asking what it would take for him to receive assistance and protection. 

“On 14th March 2026, while at a barber shop in Bwandilo, Area 47, my wife informed me that you had come to my house looking for me. She later sent a WhatsApp message confirming this. You obtained directions to the barber shop from my wife and came there with my cousin. As I was leaving for Salima for a meeting with the Reserve Bank team, I met you near Mkwichi School. I invited you into my car with the intention of creating a telecoms trail of our interaction.

“During the drive through Areas 18, 10, 43, 12, and finally to my home in Area 44, you repeatedly insisted that ‘people want to finish you’ and that I must protect you. You asked what I would require from you in order to ‘help’ you. I repeatedly told you that I was merely a referee in the Inquiry and could not assist you.

“I told you that it was unethical for you to present a sale agreement at the Public Service Pension Trust Fund while serving as an Acting Director General for Anti-Corruption Bureau. You told me that you attended that meeting for handover. When you spoke of handover, I connected my phone to car bluetooth and played a clip for you to listen to yourself making what you called ‘handover’. After dropping you off, I proceeded to Salima. On reflection, I resolved to report your conduct to Malawi Police” claims Kamsiyamo.

Kamsiyamo further alleges that Chembezi attempted to use sensitive information and documents involving other public figures as leverage to influence the direction of the inquiry. 

“At 6:24 p.m., you arrived in a black Mercedes Benz without registration plates. I noted this both at the front and rear. You asked me to sit in your car and I sat in the front passenger seat next to you. You informed me that you had just met the President, His Excellency Prof. Arthur Peter Mutharika, to brief him on your role in the Amaryllis transaction. You claimed the President told you that he was awaiting PAC’s report based on which he would act as necessary. You once again asked me to clear you.

“I told you bluntly that I could not and would not manipulate the Inquiry. You then escalated matters by showing me a document alleging that I had misused K1.1 billion for rehabilitation of Mzuzu Airport when I was Deputy Minister. I immediately challenged your facts, explaining that the project predated my appointment and was inspected by Hon. Jacob Hara and Hon. Peter Dinda long before I assumed office. I invited you to produce the contractor’s number and dial it on my phone to prove any connection. Our conversation shifted sharply at this point.

“You then showed me a docket concerning Hon. Eisenhower Mkaka and pointed out that the vehicle you had driven to my home was the one returned to ACB by Mr. Prince Kapondamgaga, allegedly from the same source as Hon. Mkaka’s. You suggested that if I helped you, you would ‘help’ Hon. Mkaka” alleges Kamsiyamo.

He said Chembezi even used the case against Chithyola and others as leverage to influence the outcome of the enquiry.

“You further claimed that the Leader of Opposition, Hon. Simplex Chithyola, had a strong case of abuse under the Greenbelt Initiative, and again urged me to clear you so that you could clear him. You went on to say that you served on the Board of the Greenbelt Initiative during MCP period and you could assist to clear those implicated in the issues report there. You said that you would do this as a token of appreciation to MCP for appointing you to that Board.You also showed me a docket concerning Hon. Bester Awali, a PAC member, alleging campaign-related maize distribution.

“It was clear you were using these dockets as leverage to procure me to abuse my role to clear you in the Inquiry. I expressed my disappointment and reminded you of my own record of integrity, including declining government-funded medical travel for my wife when I was Deputy Minister. I also told you that despite being a Director of Youth in MCP, which was in Government at the time, and as Deputy Minister, I never abused my power to unduly access NEEF loans or MEGA farm financing. I told you plainly that I would not compromise myself or the Inquiry by PAC in the Amaryllis transaction” claims Kamsiyamo in the complaint submitted to the ACB dated today.

The complaint also states that Chembezi offered to fuel Kamsiyamo’s vehicle using an ACB fuel card, which was declined.  “You then offered to fuel my car using your ACB fuel card. I declined, stating I had sufficient fuel as an MP for Lilongwe Nyanja Constituency.”.

In a further twist, a third party is said to have contacted Kamsiyamo, identifying himself as an emissary, and allegedly issued threats after attempts to influence the inquiry were rejected. 

Kamsiyamo says he reported the matter to the Inspector General of Police and briefed fellow PAC members to safeguard the integrity of the parliamentary process. 

He has since called for a full investigation into Chembezi’s conduct, describing it as “patently corrupt” and a direct attempt to undermine Parliament.

The complaint has been copied to several key offices, including President Peter Mutharika as well as the Ministry of Justice, the Attorney General and the Director of Public Prosecutions, raising the stakes in what could become a major corruption scandal.

The development places the country’s top anti-corruption body under intense scrutiny, as questions grow over the integrity of an institution tasked with fighting corruption. As of now, neither the Anti-Corruption Bureau nor Chembezi has responded to the allegations. Malawi24 is seeking comments from both parties.

Gabriel Chembezi is among the high-ranking officials whose name has been linked to the Amaryllis Hotel inquiry. He previously served as a lawyer for Amaryllis Hotel and is reported to have participated in a key meeting on November 17 where officials deliberated on the acquisition of the property. Despite the controversy surrounding the transaction, he is yet to be fired or suspended by President Peter Mutharika.

While appearing before the Parliamentary committee, Chembezi, in his capacity as Acting Director General, told lawmakers that the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) had not found evidence of criminal wrongdoing in the K128 billion purchase of the Amaryllis Hotel by the Public Service Pension Trust Fund (PSPTF). However, the ACB was later forced to make a U-turn following public outcry and mounting evidence that emerged during the hearings.

The scandal has implicated public officials from both the previous and current administrations of Presidents Lazarus Chakwera and Peter Mutharika, highlighting the depth and reach of the controversy.

Although the process leading to the purchase began during the administration of former President Lazarus Chakwera, the acquisition was finalised under the current administration of President Peter Mutharika, who has since backed the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) inquiry into the deal.

Some of the officials named in connection with the transaction include former Secretary to the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC), Colleen Zamba; former State House Chief of Staff, Prince Kapondamgaga; and former Director of Legal Services at OPC and Chairperson of the PSPTF Board, Chizaso Nyirongo.

Despite the seriousness of the allegations, President Mutharika has yet to suspend or dismiss some of the officials linked to the scandal, a development that has drawn criticism from governance and accountability advocates.

The controversial acquisition of the Amaryllis Hotel by the Public Service Pension Trust Fund (PSPTF) has come under intense parliamentary scrutiny after it emerged that the deal, valued at K128.7 billion, may have been significantly overpriced. Independent valuations reportedly placed the property at around K48 billion, raising concerns that the pension fund may have paid nearly three times its actual value.

So far, the Pension Fund has already paid K90.125 billion to Yusuf Investments Limited (YIL), the owners of the hotel, intensifying public outrage over the handling of the transaction.