By Uzoma Akobundu

The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) may have taken over the ownership  of Ikeja Lagos Best Western Hotel located on the popular Allen Avenue, but without knowing what to do with it. The place has been permanently shut with guests sent out, and all operations therein suspended.

The closure of the hotel without proper evacuation of perishable items from the store and kitchen is already posing some environmental challenges on the street housing the hotel with residents at the risk of contacting diseases due to the oozing stench from the hotel’s premises.
AMCON had besieged the Allen Avenue premises of the Ikeja Lagos Best Western Hotel on Monday, September 18 with truck load of policemen over indebtedness of the owners, but had to temporary pullout on the understanding that the owners were ready to settle with the loan recovering body, according to Armadanews.com findings.
No reason was given, however for the initial sudden pull out despite the boast by AMCON officials that the hotel will remain sealed until they have compelled Edward Akilade, the managing director/CEO of the hotel to pay the sum of N27 billion he allegedly borrowed from defunct Oceanic Bank PLC.

Few days after, AMCON returned to the hotel, forced the management, staff and guests out and proceeded to lock up the place. AMCON also used dirty concrete and sand debris to block the two main entrances into the hotel.

Shortly after the taking over of the hotel, stench of all sorts became the lot of the street hosting the hotel with residents and passers-by fearing looming epidemics.

Although there are security operatives placed in the hotel to oversee the property, it is feared that the stores and kitchen of the hotel may have been tampered with it as the policemen keeping watch over the place allegedly occasionally bring out rice from the hotel.

“AMCON is simply destroying the edifice. Why take over the hotel if it did not know what to do with it? Yes the owners of the hotel are owing, but is it better to watch such big hotel with many people in its employ to be rendered jobless while AMCON watches its rot? The next thing you will hear now is that another person has bought the hotel, may be at an amount far lower that what the original owners are owing because from the way AMCON is going, the hotel may soon be sold as scrap. You can see that already unknown persons are displaying cars right in front of the hotel, meaning that the place is now forgotten. I think government and its agencies are simply killing businesses in this country,” a resident within the Bamishile street housing the hotel told Armadanews.com during the week.

Armadanews.com was told  by an official of AMCON that Akilade had also refused to obey orders of the court in respect of his huge exposures hence the enforcement of the court orders. “Even President Muhammadu Buhari cannot disobey court orders, so he does not have any right not to obey the orders of the court,” an official of AMCON explained to us.

On the wall of the hotel AMCON also boldly wrote: “This premises has been taken over by AMCON.”

Akilade had told the police he was not ready to vacate the hotel but AMCON said the man has no choice given that the hotel had been taken over through court pronouncement.

Guests were not only embarrassed by the development but some of the staff were taken unawares as they did not know what was fishing.

However, AMCON had insisted that their men would remain at the premises of the hotel for as long as the owner does the needful; obey the court order on his indebtedness.

“If he pays us now we will leave, but if he refuses, we will remain there,” said AMCON official who also added that the Corporation has the capacity to appoint those to manage the hotel to profitability.
During the media briefing Akilade held last month, he queried the N27billion AMCON said his hotel owed, noting that the amount was below N6billion.
Akilade had reiterated that he had told AMCON that they must have to kill him before he vacates the hotel. He also said that Senator Buruji Kasumu believed to have a hand in the hotel has nothing to do with the facility.
Less than a week after Akilade held a news conference, AMCON brought a reinforced security that not only forced the management of the hotel out of the premises but got all the guests, mainly expatriates scampering out in fear.
On the walls of the hotel were once more written: “This property has been taken over by ANCON.”
Also, all the entry points of the hotel had been blocked with truck loads of stone pebbles while the security personnel now stay inside and outside the premises keeping watch over the property.
None of the hotel personnel was available for comments when Armadanews.com visited, September 26, but a policeman told us that the place had been taken over by government.

“The owner is on the run,” he said.
When we contacted an official of AMCON again he said: “I told you they have no choice than to pay what they are owing or be forced out.”

Another visit to the hotel on Friday, October 7 revealed a once bubbling hotel now in decrepit state, with cars being displayed in its frontage, the surrounding dirty and the inside oozing stench that indicates gradual decay of the hotel under the watch of AMCON.