President Bola Tinubu has stressed the need to revive national assets across the country to complement his administration’s drive on infrastructure and sectoral growth.
Leading dignitaries at the commissioning of the first phase of the remodeled 154 bed Premier Hotel in Ibadan, Tinubu said the project showed that heritage should be preserved, renewed and adapted to contemporary realities rather than left to decay, and that it mirrored the rebirth of other iconic national assets.
He said the visionary leadership of the old Western Region had understood that sustainable development required long term thinking and strategic investment, which prompted the Odua conglomerate to build the hotel and other projects. He described hospitality and tourism as a global enterprise central to the diversification drive of the Renewed Hope Agenda.
Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, represented by Secretary to the State Government Musibau Babatunde, called the project a major milestone in restoring one of Nigeria’s most iconic hospitality establishments, while Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, represented by Bimbola Salu-Hundeyin, said it showed heritage preservation and economic modernization could complement each other.
Ondo Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa described the reopening as the rebirth of a historic institution, and Odu’a Investment Company Chairman Bimbo Ashiru recalled that Premier Hotel was established in 1966 as the Western Region’s flagship hospitality asset and once ranked among the most prestigious hotels in West Africa.
