Nothing will stop me from completing the auditing of the account of Le-Meridien Ibom Hotel and Golf Resort, Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State, has warned.
Governor Emmanuel who spoke over the weekend during the monthly prayer meeting at Government House, Uyo, said that the state took a logical decision of examining the return on investments after several years of putting up the hospitality outfit and making major investments in the outfit.
According to him, the reason for any investment was profit, hence it was necessary for the government to audit the accounts of the outfit.
He said it was the seriousness attached to the project that made the government to employ the services of Price WaterHouse Coopers.
The governor said the intention of Marriot to abandon the resort simply because the auditing process had started was unacceptable.
“I had a meeting with them and I told them you are not going. I am going to take a trip to their regional office in Dubai and tell them that this marriage cannot be separated now.”
He said since the hotel management had reported that they had made no gains in the facility, the only ideal thing was for them to exercise patience and allow the auditing exercise to be concluded.
He said those who were opposed to ensuring accountability would not have their way as he was not ready to compromise.
He recalled his recent contributions to the hotel maintenance which included the 1500KVA generating system and refurbishing of the entire lighting system, refurbishing of the toilets, the repair of the cooling system among other renovations.
He stated that the management continued asking for money, citing its agreement with the state government, which prompted his decision to appraise the account of the hotel.
He said he had had a fruitful meeting with the management of the hotel and there was no cause for alarm.
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