28th February 2026, NewsOrient, Opinion, Column, Governance And Development, Business And Economy, News
By Emeka Nwosu, PhD.

Last Wednesday, February 25, 2026, history was made in the popular Enyimba City of Aba, when the hardworking Governor of Abia State, Dr. Alex Chioma Otti, flagged off the reconstruction of the long-abandoned Enyimba International Hotel. The project was initiated by the late Administrator of the defunct East Central State, Dr. Ukpabi Asika, in 1972 shortly after the end of the Nigeria-Biafra Civil war. The foundation stone was laid in 1975.

Following the return to civilian rule in 1979, the project was inherited by the dynamic administration of the inimitable Chief Sam Onunaka Mbakwe, fondly called Dee Sam. He continued from where Asika stopped. Mbakwe took the structure into an enviable stage. By the time the civilian administration was sacked by the Military in 1983, Enyimba Hotel was standing as an uncompleted 120-room 7-storey edifice overlooking the Aba River.

With the exit of Mbakwe from the scene, nothing tangible happened again at the project site.

Succeeding administrations over the years made no serious efforts to bring the dream to reality. The Aba Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with some leading businessmen in the city made some efforts to resuscitate the dream. But with little or no encouragement from the predator regimes that successively governed Abia, the revitalization of the hotel remained a pipe dream.

Thanks to the performing Governor of Abia, Dr. Alex Otti who, today, has given practical expression to his avowed intention to reclaim and rebuild the abandoned Enyimba Hotel. The flag-off ceremony, which had in attendance the representatives of Radisson Blu, the global hospitality chain who are partnering with the Abia State Government on the project and a large crowd of cheering residents of Aba and other dignitaries drawn from far and near, was indeed a dream come true.

Shortly before the flag-off, the Governor had earlier commissioned the Ovom reclamation project within the vicinity of the Enyimba Hotel. This is a landmark achievement which was thought impossible before now. The Ovom area was swallowed by a huge and wide gorge measuring 400 meters away from the ground level. This gorge cut of many adjoining roads within the area making connectivity impossible.

Many thriving businesses within the area were ruined, and families were displaced.

It was a hopeless situation. But Dr. Otti, not one to shy away from challenges, vowed to do the impossible.

With strong determination and on the instrumentality of the Greater Aba Development Authority (GADA), the special purpose vehicle he specifically set up to drive urban renewal in Aba, Otti was able to overcome. This has paved way for the resuscitation of the Enyimba Hotel.

Speaking at the flag off, Otti underscored the importance of the project and assured the people of Aba that the dream of the Enyimba Hotel would achieve physical manifestation under his watch.

He said: “This structure essentially captures the undying force of Enyimba City, its power to evolve and the grandeur of its ambitions. We have gathered this afternoon as witnesses to history, to curate a story that would live eternally in the annals of time; Aba is back. Enyimba is rising and the dream that was once stalled, shall now rise to meet the glory of the skies”. This is great and reassuring, to say the least.

The Governor has given 18-month deadline for the completion of the first phase of the project which involves the total reconstruction of the 120-room edifice. He also disclosed a planned second phase which would bring the total number of rooms in the five star edifice to 250. On completion, the Radisson Blu Enyimba International Hotel is expected to offer first class luxury services to its guests who would come in from different parts of the globe to do business or seek pleasure in a resurgent Aba in particular, and the new Abia, in general.

Governor Otti also promised to deliver “a best-in-class convention centre to cater to the needs of businesses and public sector organizations seeking to find the perfect blend of novelty and class for their events”. The convention centre is projected to accommodate up to 20000 persons at a time. This centre is thus envisaged to attract major players in the entertainment industry and creative arts.

A majestic five-star Radisson Blu Enyimba International Hotel emerging in a resurgent Aba with elevated infrastructural facilities, is bound to impact positively on the economy of the great Enyimba City, and indeed Abia State. Given the well-known pedigree of Otti as a promise keeper and his unrelenting commitment to excellence, there is no doubt that the governor would live up to expectations on the Enyimba Hotel project.

Under Otti’s watch, Abia is rising, and never to fall again. A once abandoned and neglected edifice is bouncing back to life. A long forgotten dream has become a reality, all thanks to the visionary leadership of Otti.

May Abia continue to prevail and prosper!

Dr. Nwosu, a Public Policy Analyst, writes from Umuahia.
Email: cdnwosu2@gmail.com

~ Published By NewsOrient Network

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