Colony Club Casino on Thursday celebrated its 20th anniversary in grand style during an event that took place at Amaryllis Hotel in Blantyre.

The event attracted prominent names from the entertainment and business sectors. Also present at the event was the newly crowned Miss Malawi Jescar Mponda, First Princess Hlezipe Jade and Second Princess Roberta Kanjelo. It was the first official outing for the newly crowned beauty queens.

Miss Culture Memory Sanjira also attended the event.

The event oozed class. The elegance that the patrons displayed in their dressing was telling. But more than anything, the presence of legendary artist Lucius ‘Soldier’ Banda was the main highlight of the night.

The Balaka-bred musician provided the toast during the event with a rare long performance. These days, the artist is not known for long stage performances. But the experience on Thursday was different as the artist managed two sets, with the second one lasting an hour.

It was particularly an exciting moment for the patrons as the artist gave the patrons a chance to request any song of their choice from his long list of compositions out of his 20 career albums. The experienced hands of Collen Ali and Peter Likhomo backed his performance.

The patrons also had the opportunity to buy CDs of his latest album Love and Hate at K5 000 per copy. The artist signed autographs for each copy that was bought.

Colony Club Casino general manager Iain Loudon commended the support that Malawians have offered to their business since it was opened. He said despite the challenges they have faced, they have sailed through.

“There have been ups and downs but we have managed to survive through the difficult times. The Covid-19 pandemic was the hardest. But overall it has been a good experience. We got a good reception as it was something new and people were curious to see what it was. But it is a good form of entertainment,” he said.

Loudon said they work closely with the Malawi Gaming and Lotteries Authority to ensure that their clients are gambling responsibly. He said they track their customers to make sure that they are not spending more than they can afford.

Malawi Gaming and Lotteries Authority director of operations Lawrence Chikoko in an interview said it is pleasing to see establishments such as Colony Club Casino grow, considering the contribution that they make to the country’s economy.

He said: “As a gaming authority, all our licensees pay fees and monthly levies and this is a contribution to the economy. Further to that, the Colony Club Casino has employed some Malawians. The contribution in creating employment for the citizenry is huge.”

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