From Noah Ocheni, Lokoja
The Kogi state Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Salifu Idachaba on Thursday in Lokoja cleared the air about the rumoured sales of Kogi Hotels to a private organisation.
Fielding questions from newsmen just after he gave an appraisal of the 2021 budget and a defence of the budget for his Ministry for 2022 at Kogi State House of Assembly, the Commissioner said the process for its concessionist was only put in place.
Against the background of the rumours that Kogi Hotels was sold out, the commissioner praised Governor Yahaya Bello for being transparent in conducting the state affairs by the World Bank, stressing that the rumour was unfounded.
According to him, the Governor only directed that Kogi Hotels be concessioned to a private firm that will manage it to the benefits of Kogians. This, he said, was in line with public private partnership arrangements.
The Commissioner said his Ministry, if given the needed support and legal backing by the state legislature, could generate the total revenue needed to run the affairs of the state.
“For 2021, the approved revised estimate was #1,418,500 while the actual performance was #101,300 which is 7.1 percentage, while the target budget proposal for 2022 revenue is #1,418,500 pnly,” the Commissioner said.
The Director, Arts and Culture, Wosila Ohuda in her contribution stressed the need for Kogi State Government to build a theatre arts for the agency, pointing out that such a facility would go a long way to increase revenue generation for the state.
The Director who disclosed that Arts and Culture without a theatre arts is like a farmer without tools was optimistic that if the facility was put in place, Kogi State would join her contemporaries in the entertainment industry.
