•As new owners may shut down hotel Tuesday
The last may not have been heard of the controversies trailing the NIPCO’s acquisition of Abuja Sheraton Hotel, as the employees are planning to stage a peaceful protest to demand for the payment of their severance package tomorrow (Tuesday) morning.
A reliable source told SlyeNews today (Monday), that the workers have fully mobilised to protest the unfavourable deal.
Meanwhile, the management of the company is allegedly planning to invade the premises with security operatives on Tuesday.
The source said: “Concerning the closure of Sheraton Hotel by the new owners. The workers are gathering tomorrow (Tuesday) morning to demand for the payment of their severance packages, just as the management are planning to invade the premises with security agents tomorrow morning”
Controversies have continued to trail NIPCO’s purported acquisition of majority stake in Capital Hotel Plc, owners of Abuja Sheraton Hotel in a N14 billion deal.
There are fillers that the new owners are planning to close down Sheraton Hotels Abuja tomorrow after the acquisition.
This is being done while the workers are yet to be paid their severance packages.
“They are planning to close down tomorrow while the workers have not been settled…hence the protest” a source told SlyeNews.
22 Hospitality Ltd, a parent company of NIPCO Plc recently announced it has acquired a majority stake in Capital Hotels Plc (CHP), owners of the prestigious Abuja Sheraton Hotel.
Few hours after the announcement, members of the board members have resigned while Capital Hotels has immediately announced the appointment of a new board.
Some of the workers had earlier told SlyeNews claimed they read about the acquisition only on the pages of newspapers, treating the workers with disdain having served the hospitality firm for decades.
They said the issues have elicited uneasy calm in the company, as the employees are yet to know their fate in the deal.
The workers numbering over 291 of different cadre said there is no consultation with the new owner, no hope on their entitlement if they are to be let off, when is the proposed rehabilitation of the hotel going to start and what becomes of them after upgrade? Are they going to be absorbed? All we are hearing is that one Indian firm bought the hotel !
“There is no engagement whatsoever. We don’t know what is happening, we just heard in the news that the hotel has been sold. Now we are confused. What will be the fate of the workers? We don’t even know the new owner. We expect that by now, the workers should have been addressed so that we can know our position in the deal,” the source said.
However, the sources said that the employees will not hesitate to “take the matter up”, if urgent actions are not taken by the parties to spell out the labour position” a source said.
