Fortune News | Sep 06,2020
Wereda officials have shut down Nexus Hotel for allegedly violating COVID-19 protocols and operating with an expired business license, leaving 200 employees out of work.
The closure comes barely a week after the announcement that a businesswoman had acquired the hotel for 740 million Br. The four-star Nexus Hotel, located in the Gerji Mebrat Hail area with 150 rooms, was bought by Tiliksew Gedamu, owner of the Grand Resort & Spa in Bahir Dar.
The closure was sudden; city officials and police officers abruptly entered the property in the late afternoon on Wednesday, August 4, 2021, and ordered the building evacuated within 10 minutes, according to staff members in the Hotel. There were no arrangements made on the part of officials to relocate the guests, and several left belongings behind due to the rush, said the staff. They have since had their property returned to them.
A meeting of 100 people was on when officials gave the unexpected order, and guests booked in 40 rooms were forced to vacate the property unceremoniously.
"They didn't have a warrant," a staff member told Fortune.
A security officer at Nexus told Fortunethat the incident happened quickly, and officials refused to show their identification when they entered the Hotel's premises.
The Hotel's management, which sees an average monthly turnover of 10 million Br, claims that all COVID-19 protocols were complied with, and their license is valid for the year, the latter Fortune has confirmed.
Selamawit Alemayehu, deputy head of Bole District Woreda 06, told Fortune that Nexus is not the only one, but bars and restaurants in the area have also been closed based on similar allegations.
"People are dying; public health is our priority," said Selamawit. "Hotel employees aren't the administration's concern, and our mandate is to regulate."
Officials are looking to close more establishments in the coming weeks, she disclosed.
The security personnel says many of his coworkers are distressed, feeling that they will have a hard time finding work at another hotel as officials seem to be closing them down unsparingly. Nexus is the latest of many hospitality establishments authorities have shut down in recent weeks, including Kaleb, Harmony, Diamond, and Addissinia hotels.
Ermiyas Alemu, a hotel service consultant for more than 12 years, sees the issues city officials raise as "meaningless."
"We see even senior government officials violating COVID-19 protocols," he told Fortune.
His concern lies mainly with the employees that have been left without jobs as a result of the closure. The hospitality industry only recently began recovering from the effects of the pandemic, which had plunged hotel occupancy rates to as low as two percent last year. Ermiyas urges the authorities to reconsider their decision to shut down such businesses.
"How are they expecting the employees to survive?" Ermiyas asks.
Zena Dawit, the Managing Director of Nexus Hotel, and the new owner, Tiliksew Gedamu, declined to comment on the matter.
Laying on a 3,000sqm plot of land, Nexus Hotel was first opened in 2012 with an investment of 150 million Br made by the family of Dawit Gebrestadik. The Hotel saw a 410 million Br expansion project four years later, adding nearly 100 rooms.
Last week, the previous owners disclosed the Hotel's sale to Tiliksew, who acquired the Bellevue Hotel in the Megenagna area last year. The motivation behind the sale was to shed off debt, including 25 million Br in soft loans provided by Awash Bank.
PUBLISHED ON
Aug 07,2021 [ VOL
22 , NO
1110]
Fortune News | Sep 06,2020
Radar | Jun 25,2022
Fortune News | Jun 11,2022
Radar | Dec 19,2020
Advertorials | Jul 11,2019
Fortune News | Apr 20,2019
Radar | Dec 19,2018
Agenda | Oct 08,2022
Viewpoints | Apr 20,2020
Radar | Oct 15,2022
Aug 18 , 2024 . By AKSAH ITALO
Although predictable Yonas Zerihun's job in the ride-hailing service is not immune to...
Jul 13 , 2024 . By AKSAH ITALO
Investors who rely on tractors, trucks, and field vehicles for commuting, transportin...
Jul 13 , 2024 . By MUNIR SHEMSU
The cracks in Ethiopia's higher education system were laid bare during a synthesis re...
Jul 13 , 2024 . By AKSAH ITALO
Construction authorities have unveiled a price adjustment implementation manual for s...
Sep 14 , 2024
Successive regimes share a common legacy: a deep-seated commitment to education as a...
Sep 8 , 2024
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's (PhD) visit to China last week could mark a watershed mom...
Sep 1 , 2024
Addis Abeba's skyline is being dramatically altered. Once characterised by unremarkab...
Aug 25 , 2024
It may appear distasteful, unappealing and cumbersome to sight. But, the Addis Abeba...
Loading your updates...