…Says state is safe for tourists
The state government says plans are at crescendo to develop the tourism sector with a tourism master plan to improve the potentials of the sector and boost the overall economy of the state.
The Director-General of Ekiti State Bureau of Tourism Development, Amb. Wale Ojo-Lanre disclosed this to newsmen in Ikogosi Warm Springs Resort during a tour of the revamped Resort.
Speaking with journalists, Ojo-Lanre said for any state to enhance its tourism potential to the fullest, it must first develop a tourism masterplan.
According to him, Ekiti has no tourism master plan. “A tourism development masterplan is a necessity for any state that wants to develop and the state governor, His Excellency Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji, emphasised that the first thing we have to do is to develop a tourism masterplan for Ekiti and we started,” Ojo-Lanre said.
“We have started drafting our tourism policy and we have identified the consultants to work on our tourism masterplan. The tourism masterplan would be delivered by August and October this year,” he added enthusiastically.
Dismissing concerns bordering on insecurity in the state, the DG said the reported attacks happened on the fringes of Ekiti, insisting that the tourism zones like Ikogosi, Arinta, Efon-Alaye among others are safe.
According to Ojo-Lanre, there have been deliberate efforts by the state government to secure tourists. “I don’t want to expose our security strategy, but I can tell you that we are the only state that has a homeland security as a parastatal under my agency. We know what is going on. When the road is not safe, tourism is in danger,” he stated.
Buttressing Ojo-Lanre’s views, the General Manager Glocient Hospitality, a subsidiary of Cavista Holdings, an investment firm that is currently managing the Ikogosi Warm Sprint Resort, Sharafa Lanre Balogun, assured visitors of top-notch security in and around the resort.
He stated that Glocient Hospitality’s take management of the resort followed a concession agreement signed with the state government in 2022.
“We have experienced people that have managed the security of major VIPs in this country, and they are the people that we have brought down here to look after our security architecture,” he said.
On his part, the chief security officer (CSO) of Cavista Holdings, Dauda Ismail, a retired Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) stated that the resort site is located in a zone where crime rate is virtually zero.
He said, “I’m in touch with the conventional security forces – the police, the DSS, Civil Defence (NSCDC), and based on the statistics they have, we are at a zero crime rate here.”
“When you classify the crime into a felony, simple offence, for the past six months that I have been here, I have not witnessed any felony offence taking place. So, there is no major crime like kidnapping, murder or any of these crimes happening around,” he added.
