News, Commentary & Social Media from African Perspective

The Tinapa Tragedy

13 comments

Posted by: CareTaker on February 12, 2008 Under: Africa, Business & Technology, Discussion Lounge

  • Print This Post Print This Post
  • Muti This Muti This


tinapa.jpg

Mid last year, I got wind of the problems facing the multi-billion dollar Tinapa Business and Leisure Resort in Calabar, Nigeria. “The shops and stalls are closed and the place is deserted and there’s much going on”, I was told then. In fact, my source tagged the Tinapa concept as another white elephant Nigerian project.

Then, I didn’t want to believe given the strategic importance of project. But now, a report by ThisDay newspaper (via Allafrica.com: Nigeria: Country Loses N219b Yearly On Tinapa) is forcing me to think otherwise: “The Tinapa Business and Leisure Resort, built at an estimated cost of $450 million (about N54 billion), is not operational” writes the news daily.

When THISDAY visited the project located at Adiabo in Odukpani Local Government Area of Cross River State, the place looked deserted with only a few shops open. Even the few open shops would not sell their wares to people for fear that they would incur the wrath of men of the Nigerian Customs Service.

At one of the shops rented by Vlisco, the management of the company pasted a notice on its doors that they had been forced to suspend operations on the directives of Customs…

Some officers of the Customs were also seen moving around the Site apparently to ensure that the few shops stocked with wares did not sell to people who troop in to the Resort to shop.

The newspaper report links the Tinapa problem to “the failure of the Federal Government to approve the Procedures and Guidelines for the operation of the resort”. It states further that “the construction of Tinapa has been completed and all that remains is for the Federal Government to approve the Procedures and Guidelines that were jointly prepared by the same Government and private stakeholders since October 2007.”

And there is more bad news. The paper states:

Dubai Government had realized that a sizeable portion of their revenue would be affected by the successful take-off of Tinapa and was already taking steps to shore up its revenue by investing in similar projects in Senegal and Ghana…Dubai Government is investing $800 million (short term) and $3 billion (long term) on developing a tax and duty free leisure and business resort in Dakar and also taking over the Port in Dakar to make Senegal their trade hub in West Africa.

Quoting my good friend, BRE: “What the heck is going on in the Nigerian government and business community to allow this huge project to founder?

Well, you tell me! Anything with the “government” tag is bad omen in Nigeria, this is one lesson we have learned since independence.

Hat-tip: BRE @ Jewels of the Jungle
Image source: www.showafrika.com

Advertisement

These posts may have related contents:



Read latest blog entries


Hot Thread

Browse latest comments - click to add yours...