Hoteliers and other operators of leisure and travel agencies in the country under the aegis of Nigeria Hotels Association (NHA) have lamented that the interstates travel ban imposed by the federal government as a measure to curtail the spread of coronavirus pandemic has crippled their hotels and leisure businesses a development they say may take time to rebuild.
The lamentation was made by the National President of the Association, Eze Patrick Anyanwu while addressing Journalists during a press conference held at Zaranda Hotels and Towers Bauchi, on Friday saying that they have continued to record huge losses since the imposition of the travel ban.
He also noted that 95 per cent of their customers are travellers who come from other states lamenting however that many hotels have now resorted to borrowing money from banks for the maintenance of the hotels and payment of staff salaries.
Patrick Anyanwu who stated that hotels contribute immensely to national development especially through the provision of jobs to numerous citizens urged the federal government to include them among the beneficiaries of the COVID 19 palliative to save the business from collapse.
“Above all, the request of our financial palliative through the umbrella of the Federation of Tourism Association of Nigeria (FTAN) as a special intervention is hereby being stressed again. I want to use this opportunity to inform the federal government that the hospitality industry is very important in this country.”
He added, “We are the ones accommodating your visitors coming into the country from all over the world. We are contributing immensely to the economy of this country.
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According to the hotels’ proprietors, if markets and places of worship which can gather more people at a time from different places could be opened, the federal government should also lift interstates ban to allow leisure seekers free movement assuring that the hotels would comply with all the COVID 19 precautionary guidelines and protocol.
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