HAS Robert Badal, hotelier, businessman, and high ranking member of the Alliance For Change (AFC) party finally seen the light?Does his announcement in the media that he is seeking $8M equity share in the Marriott Hotel, be interpreted that he agrees, after all, that there is merit in Government building Guyana’s first brand hotel?

OBSERVER recalls this financier of the AFC political party, being one of the early voices of vehement protests, when Government had initially announced its intention to embark on this major project.

Of course, his stringent objections and vociferous negatives are best understood that such a brand service was being constructed in the immediate neighbourhood of his Le Meridien Pegasus Hotel. No doubt his many loud NOs, since the latter situation would definitely become a very serious competitor and, if possible, threaten his outfit’s viability. Objectively, OBSERVER understood his thorough state of mortal apprehension.

Instead, he chose to hurl all sorts of misguided and unmerited comments against the proposed Marriott, citing its inapplicability to the local hotel industry, with its perceived inability to achieve maximum occupancy level, as his main thrust. He even concluded that the hotel would not be able to recover costs.

Fast forward 2015, he is now reported as saying that with all details pertaining to incentives and tax breaks “coming to light” he is ready to make his investment that will gave him a 67% ownership of the Hotel.

OBSERVER, without any hint of sarcasm, concludes that this citizen – like the party to which he is affiliated, has to be joking! Is he for real? Does he reside in another dimension? Or does he read the dailies?
This is a project that Government had advertised both nationally and internationally for quite some time, with full details as to conditions. And if Badal is citing ignorance of this fact, then he is not a very serious business person as such persons’ first direction in the daily print media are the business pages.
It is obvious that Badal had always been convinced as to the necessity of such a brand, and how well such would serve Guyana, given its current profile as an emerging tourist destination.

But, bowing to a party of amateur politicians, and anti-developers, he sacrificed reason on the altar of political narrow-mindedness. Many thought his pronouncements on the project, indeed archaic, particularly in light of what such a flagship hotel would do for the country.

His announcement stands as a very serious repudiation of the stupidity and reckless anti-national politics of his party and his own inability in understanding the thrust of national development. But, it is also a definitely delightful vindication of Government’s unswerving position in bringing this groundbreaking project to fruition.