Immediate past Commissioner For Information in Rivers State Dr Austin Tam George has said he is saddened by Governor Nyesom Wike’s Revocation of the C Of O of Novotel Hotel over flimsy excuse that the hotel is being used for electoral fraud.
Tam George who was reacting to the development on his FACEBOOK page said the decision by Governor Nyesom Wike was not for the best interest of the State.
Below is his submission
ON NOVOTEL HOTEL.
“The revocation of the certificate of occupancy of Novotel Hotel in Port Harcourt over the weekend by Governor Nyesom Wike disappoints and saddens me”.
“If a business premises is suspected or established to be a crime scene, the police, acting on a court order, could move in to take control”.
It is extraordinary for a State government to revoke the certificate of occupancy of a business, simply because opposition politicians lodged there.
Politicians in the state might think this is part of politics.
But it is a hostile signal to the business and investment community that Rivers State is a toxic environment, and that a 99-year land lease could be withdrawn impulsively at any minute, by the governor.
“As Commissioner for Information in Rivers State, i held 41 media events, including world press conferences and television appearances, to make the case for the state as Nigeria’s best investment destination.
Even now, the Wike administration is running an expensive advertorial on CNN, inviting foreign direct investment into Rivers State”.
“The whimsical attack on Novotel feeds the noxious narrative that Rivers State is a risky place to invest. It is a direct kick in the face of the administration’s own efforts to attract investors to the state, in order to create jobs.
As governor of Rivers State, Mr Rotimi Amaechi made similar wrong-headed and extreme decisions.
I urge governor Wike to avoid taking the same intemperate path, in the interest of the State”.
