There is trouble brewing in Kwara State over the award of a multi-million naira capital project to two contractors in the state. The contract on the remodelling and rehabilitation of Kwara Hotels Limited has been for a while been shrouded in secrecy, with the public and opposition camps asking questions regarding the contract award, bidding process, contractor’s competence and cost.
While none of the questions has been answered, the revelation by the State Ministry of Business Innovation and Technology, that the contract has been awarded to Craneburg Construction Company has further heightened public curiosity, regarding the AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq government’s plan to reposition the hotel as an elite hotel since 2020.
Indeed, Harmony Holdings Limited, the state government agency which manages all Kwara State’s commercial and business interests published an invitation for the expression of interest to fix and operate the 172-room Kwara Hotels facility in The Herald newspaper on 18th October 2020. Months after, precisely July 2021, it announced that an indigenous company, Crystal Group of Companies, had emerged as the preferred bidder for the project. Crystal Group of Companies belongs to Hon. Moshood Mustapha, a Chieftain of the All Progressive Congress, APC, in Kwara State and the Governor’s party associate.
In a letter dated June 2, 2022, retrieved from Page 2 of the National Pilot Newspaper of 19th December 2023, Harmony Holdings Limited clearly stated that the Kwara State Executive Council had approved the concession of Kwara Hotels to Crystal Group of Companies on a ‘Fix and Operate basis’.
The Terms of Engagement included the commitment of the sum of N3 billion by Crystal Group of Companies for the renovation and management of the hotel; the payment of concession fees for the 1st five years, and revenue profit sharing for subsequent years.
In addition, the award letter stated that, “Harmony Holdings Ltd shall pass an unencumbered property to Crystal Group of Companies, particularly regarding outstanding liabilities to the tune of N359,880,782.68 million”.
Considering that the approval of the State Executive Council was expressly transmitted to the Kwara State House of Assembly for its resolution on the concession of Kwara Hotels Limited to Crystal Group of Companies, it is quite surprising that the same contract has been awarded to Craneburg Construction Company.
To further worsen the situation, the Kwara Hotels project which had hitherto been valued at N3 billion by Crystal Group of Companies, will now gulp a whooping N17.8 billion. How Craneburg and the government arrived at that outrageous sum – which is about six times more than the previous contract sum – remains much to be desired.
Craneburg, one of Nigeria’s biggest construction companies thus, became the preferred ‘bride’ of the Kwara State Government. Not only has the company been awarded a N17.8 billion contract to renovate the 172-room Kwara Hotel facility on a contract financing basis, it has also been awarded several other contracts across the state, worth billions of naira.
As it stands, there are two Executive approvals for the renovation and remodelling of the Kwara Hotel facility. This has raised concerns about the true intention of the state government towards the hotel which was once the pride of Kwara. Since its establishment by Brigadier-General David Bamigboye in 1975 up till 2019, the hotel has prided itself as the preferred relaxation spot by both local and international tourists due to its top-notch hospitality services.
Popular opinion in Kwara indicates that the Kwara state government attaches more importance to foreign contractors at the expense of indigenous contractors. Our government’s penchant for foreign services will only weaken the resolve of indigenous contractors and this will have an adverse effect on the state in the long run. A source who preferred anonymity disclosed that the re-assignment of the project is already causing a row between both camps. The source, an aide to Hon. Mustapha, disclosed that the APC Chieftain is mulling the idea of dragging the state government to court over the matter.
It is still unknown, what next for the iconic Kwara Hotels. wBut one thing is certain, the last has not been heard over the imbroglio.