A Rejoinder to Abia Hotel Management: Enough of the Grandstanding!
The attention of all well-meaning Abians has been drawn to the pompous and deliberately obtuse rebuttal issued by the so-called “Board and Management” of Abia Hotel Limited.
This response is not just an insult to the intelligence of the people of Abia State, but a brazen display of the very bad faith and entitlement that has held this state back for decades. The Government, under the focused leadership of Dr. Alex Otti, spoke a simple truth, and the reaction from the hotel management has proven the government’s point more eloquently than any commissioner ever could.
Let us be clear and blunt:
- Your “Operational” Status is a Charade.
To boast of being”open for business” while presiding over a shadow of the hotel’s potential is the definition of bad faith. A few guests in a handful of rooms and 52 employees do not constitute a thriving enterprise; they are a testament to managed decline. The Government and the people of Abia see a prime asset languishing in plain sight, a jewel covered in the dust of neglect. Your claim of operation is a technicality designed to mask a reality of underperformance. Abia State deserves more than a hotel that is merely “open”; it deserves a flagship institution that is thriving.
- Your Legalistic Bluster Cannot Hide the Moral Abandonment.
You hide behind Latin phrases and legal agreements,but the people of Abia see through this smokescreen. Res ipsa loquitur? The fact does indeed speak for itself: the hotel is a pale, underutilized relic compared to what it should be. While you celebrate a 25-year lease, the people of Abia suffer a 25-year sentence of underdevelopment. Your strategy is one of legal obstruction, not of productive partnership. This is the height of bad faith: using technicalities to hold the collective prosperity of Abia State hostage.
- Your Strategy is Clearly One of Sabotage and Blackmail.
By publicly attacking the”suffocating policies of the immediate past administration,” you are not praising the present government; you are attempting to drive a wedge and set a poisonous precedent. You are essentially saying, “Work with us on our terms, or we will label you as hostile as the last failed administration.” This is a cheap and transparent gambit. The Otti administration will not be blackmailed by the ghosts of past failures that entities like yours are all too comfortable with.
- The Government’s Statement was a Necessary Act of Truth-Telling.
Calling the hotel”recoverable property” was not an act of malice; it was a declaration of intent. It was a signal to the people of Abia that this government will not stand by while strategic assets are crippled by bad agreements and worse management. It was a warning shot across the bow of entrenched interests that the era of “business as usual” is over. The government was right to lash out against the forces of stagnation you represent.
Therefore, the Board and Management of Abia Hotel are advised thusly:
- Issue an Unreserved Apology to the Government and People of Abia State.
Apologize for your arrogant tone.Apologize for your attempts to manipulate public sentiment with emotional language. Apologize for presiding over the decay of a state asset.
- Drop the Legal Pretense and Come to the Table in Genuine Good Faith.
Your strategy of hiding behind contracts is a losing one.The resolve of a government elected on a mandate of change is a force more powerful than any clause in your lease. Approach the government with a realistic plan for either significantly ramping up investment to world-class standards or gracefully exiting the arrangement. - Align with Abia’s Progress or Get Out of the Way.
The people of Abia State are tired of excuses.We are tired of seeing what could be a source of pride and revenue remain a symbol of failure. The government’s duty is to the people, not to a boardroom that prioritizes its narrow interests over the common good.
This is not the time for cleverly worded rebuttals. It is a time for action. The government has drawn a line in the sand. The management of Abia Hotel should have the sense to see which side of history it wants to be on.
Enough is enough.
AProf Chukwuemeka Ifegwu Eke
