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It was an accusation and counter-accusation by an Owerri, Imos State, based hotelier and officials of the Owerri Capital Development Authority, OCDA over the alleged vandalisation of a popular hotel in the Imo State capital by the officials of OCDA.
This followed the alleged invasion and vandalization of the popular ultra–model hotel complex, Bilton Continental Hotel, by the official of the agency on Thursday, while enforcing structural integrity on the facility.
Owners of the hotel, situated on the Yaradua Drive, Roundabout World Bank Road, the axis of the state capital claimed that the Tue facility was invaded by some staff of the establishment.
Conducting newsmen round the vandalised hotel complex, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Mr Joseph Duruaku, said that officials of OCDA on arrival in a commando way began looting and vandalisation of spree of items belonging to the hotel.
Duruaku listed the items vandalised and carted away by the officials to include: 5 television sets, a music system, fan, split unit, broken window louvres, 6 seriatos, broken safe, 2 Air conditioners as well as some vital documents tearfully.
Duruaku who put the value of the items lost at N9 million said that he had forwarded a petition to the Commissioner of Police in the state and the Director of Department of State Services on the matter and had as well contacted the lawyer to the company for his necessary action.
“They claimed to have come from the OCDA but when I got in touch with their officials on my mobile phone, they claimed knowledge of the incident but the leader of the team who carried out the operation – one Hon. Godwin Nwankwo dropped a letter wherein he (Nwankwo) claimed that his mission was to carry out a structural integrity soil notice on the hotel.”
Narrating his ordeal in the hands of the OCDA agents, a security guard, Dantata Audu, said that having bulldozed their way into the hotel premises, the officials descended on him, pushed him down and gave him the beating of his life and broke the main entrance glass door of the hotel.
Reacting to the incident the General Manager of the Authority, Innocent Ikpamezie, in a telephone chat insisted that the staff are always guided by the provisions of the law in their operations.
Ikpamezie blamed some members of the public for their often unwarranted aggression and hostility to the staff of the Authority performing their legitimate duties.
He said: “Let them give you whatever information they want and if we visit any hotel and if does not possess the necessary official documents for operation, the law permits us to seal it.”
