By | Samuel Ayara
When the Late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, in September 2009, braved a groundswell of dissent to perform the groundbreaking for the Ibom Tropicana Centre, in Uyo, those who believed in Chief Godswill Akpabio’s visionary leadership could take the bet that Akwa Ibom State was positioning for critical tourism visibility in the region.
President Yar’Adua was not miserly with his accolades for Akpabio. He was truly proud of the administration’s infrastructural priorities, as he reflected on the socioeconomic prospects of the centre, designed with a 4-Star hotel, Convention Centre, wet and dry theme park, and the Cineplex as critical appurtenances.
Like other pro-Akpabio sensationalists, then Information Minister, Dora Akunyili was in gloves for an opportunity to spotlight how much vision could redefine the existential realities for a people.
Months turned into years, and in time, the Cineplex was completed and put to use, while progress on other components of the facility slowed.
After over one and a half decades, in the depths of its inglorious decline, came the finishing energy that understands times and value. Governor Umo Eno, in his commitment to rescuing the state from the inglorious hold of abandoned projects, swung by the Tropicana corridor, with a promise to reignite hope and realign the vision intended to make the state a regional tourism hotspot.
34 months down the line, the Tropicana corridor is roaring back to life with the ‘finisher’s anointing’. 250-bed hotel, Shopping city, 5000 capacity convention centre, internal roads, all restructured to meet contemporary realities, and announce Akwa Ibom as a sub-national that is resolute and ready to explore a non-oil future.
The 5000-seater Convention Centre is a super component of the ambitious Tropicana spread that caught my interest during a recent visit. Governor Eno’s Akwa Ibom State is opening up on more fronts, warmly assuring the world of her readiness and capacity to host more than a few.
The brief but detailed tour of this centre of promise by Antoine Nakhle, Senior Project Manager at Craneburg Construction, opened the mind to the luxury, functionality and serviceability that have gone into its curation.
Not much has changed in its architectural design, save for components that require modifications to suit contemporary functionality.
In an era when attention to detail seems relegated, the Convention Centre is already boasting of the best pick in high-end finishing materials and accessories, modestly making it second to none in the region.
Epileptic power has nothing on Ibom Convention Centre. Aside from public power, there are at various stages of installation, two CNG Generators, another two Diesel generators, in addition to solar power infrastructures, to guarantee energy reliability with sustainability in mind.
As the completion date approaches, neither workers nor visitors to the facility are spared the whirring, humming, and buzzing sounds of the machines deployed to perfect fittings for the acoustic wall claddings, align roof trusses, and assemble the VIP area moissanite.
Safety sits at the nucleus of its design and construction. This is Nigeria’s first project to be fitted with over 3000 sprinklers, to double-insulate the facility from any form of fire incidence.
Purposed for comfort and convenience, the escalators have already been installed; elevators, according to Nakhle, are expected in weeks, while a definitive top-of-the-range chiller that would allow guests the feel of acclimation they would have no need of breaking a sweat, regardless the climate’s daring fangs.
The two-floor, 8000-square-metre facility not only houses the auditorium but also includes amphitheatres, meeting rooms, and smaller conferencing options that have already been tiled, painted, and have the electrical and mechanical components fitted, as well as properly landscaped exteriors.
Its measurable socioeconomic impact on livelihoods during construction is already putting smiles on more faces than a few. Engr. Patrick Ekpe and Ime Okoko are among the corps of over 700 workers who have found the fortune of working as skilled or unskilled workforce.
Workers on the project, profiled as over 95 per cent indigenous, are grateful to Governor Umo Eno, whom they described as a visionary and proactive leader. For some of them, the experience garnered from the project has provided them a pedestal far higher than they arrived. More than livelihood, working on a project of this magnitude is for them a different level of satisfaction.
This ambition transcends the quest to colour the skylines of the Akwa Ibom State capital. It is a stride taken so the State can join the nation’s political and economic capitals, Abuja and Lagos, respectively, in conferencing, as the Ibom Convention Centre prepares to premiere as a one-stop shop for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions.
On completion, it will offer diverse opportunities for the State, driving socioeconomic growth, infrastructure development, and cultural exchanges that would energise collaboration and scale visibility for indigenous creatives, who will find the numerous events the centre would attract as bankable opportunities to explore.
Sustaining the acclaim as one of Nigeria’s most sought-after destinations, with a functional airline, good road network and a fledgling sea transportation option, Akwa Ibom State, in staying big on peace and security, stable political climate, strong economy and famed hospitality, will definitely be a Unique Selling point that would make the State a conferencing delight.
Returning the once sleepy Tropicana ecosystem to its bubbling glory with the 5000 capacity Ibom International Conference Centre, apart from socioeconomic prospects for the state’s tourism footprints, signposts Governor Umo Eno’s unbent resolve at transiting the Akwa Ibom dream to a palpable kinetic, for generations unborn.
Samuel Ayara Writes from Ibong Otoro in Abak LGA
THE GOVERNOR, PST UMO BASSEY ENO IS DOING VERY WELL