As Argungu grand fishing hotel fades…

Argungu Fishing Festival is a major annual event which dates back to the early 20th century and has continued to attract tourists from different parts of Nigeria and from other countries of the world. The fishing event which holds every February or March in the year, has turned the ancient town of Argungu and its […]

Argungu Fishing Festival is a major annual event which dates back to the early 20th century and has continued to attract tourists from different parts of Nigeria and from other countries of the world.

The fishing event which holds every February or March in the year, has turned the ancient town of Argungu and its environs into a Mecca of sorts, given the large number of tourists from around the countries of the world who usually gather in the town to witness and or celebrate the fishing festival.

To enable the tourists have a complete feel of the fishing festival, a  three Star “Grand Fishing” Hotel and a festival village with round huts,  was built by the then old Sokoto state government.

The grand fishing hotel is about a kilometer drive away from the fishing festival village. It was built on an expansive and well designed landscape, with all the requirements of a three star hotel to meet international standards.

Apart from its attractive architectural design and aluminum works which add some special effects to the entire structure of the hotel, its lobby, reception, restaurant of about 150 sitting arrangement and a 260 capacity banquet hall and well structured rooms, will always tempt a first time visitor to the hotel to return.

The Argungu grand fishing hotel is a twin wing hotel of 60 rooms. The rooms are of two categories:  the suite room which is a room and a parlour with exquisite curtains, rugs, comfortable furniture, beds and is well lit. The second category is the double room with single room, with a feeling of comfort and colours, to show a sense of taste.

During the Argungu fishing festival which is the peak period for the Grand Fishing Hotel, in terms of patronage, the suite rooms, according to a senior staff of the hotel goes for N28,000, while the double room goes for N18,000.00 per day.

“The Argungu fishing period is our peak period. That is when we make the bulk of our sales. For you to get a room here you must pay into our account at the UBA, weeks before the fishing festival or else you won’t get accommodation here. The white people are our major customer’s. At times they occupy the entire 60 rooms. When there is no more room they ask us to make arrangement for them at our banquet hall. Accommodation here is a serious issue. Even our former chairman, Alhaji Dantata, may not get a room here if he fails to book in advance”, the workers said.

These are what is known of the Argungu grand fishing hotel in the past. Unfortunately today, the hotel is fast declining impacting. On a visit to the hotel recently, one is reminded of a hotel that once flourished  but which is  now lying idle, isolated due to abandonment, neglect by the state authority  and what some commentators describe as its geographical location.

The Grand Fishing Hotel was commissioned on November 20, 1987. It was initiated about the same time with the Gusau Hotel,  and Shukura Hotel in Sokoto State by the then civilian governor of old Sokoto, late Alhaji Shehu Muhammad Kangiwa.

The hotel which in its hey days ,had courted attention of various international organizations such as UNICEF, ACTION AID INTERNATIONAL, IFAD and AQUIRE FISTULA CARE PROJECT and other individual customers, is now begging for attention. It seems it is dying gradually because it is being denied attention due largely to neglect and lack of genuine commitment on the part of government, for the sustenance of its vision and mission.

A staff of the hotel who begged for anonymity told Sunday Trust, “Honestly, we are lacking patronage here. I think this has to do with the geographical location of the hotel and the neglect it has suffered in the hands of government. Fortunately, this is one of the best hotels around the state. I can tell you that we cannot boast of five customers a day. At times we have one or three. Yet they will want us to give them discount for lodging here in spite of the fact that we have to reduce our room rates. We don’t really put on our generators all the time, except we have up to ten customers. How can we have four customers, and you expect us to put on our generator when they expect us to give them discount of about N3000, from what they paid on accommodation. Look we have good meals here. If you doubt me, you can have a taste of it to confirm my claim. whatever you want we have it. I tell you the only problem we have is patronage. It is really killing us here. Government has to help us and do something urgent. The hotel is truly in a bad shape right now.”

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One side of the twin wing of the hotel was gutted by fire in 2006.Up till this moment, it is still standing   unattended to. It is disheartening to see what fire did to the edifice, which was said to be the biggest wing of the hotel with 36 rooms. Yet, since 2006 till date, nothing has been done to bring it to life again. The building was lying lifelessly with rubble of its burnt exquisite interior decorations and 260 seater banquet hall capacity, all over the place.

A public commentator and one of the few people who still patronizes the hotel to keep it afloat, Dr A. D. Umar, says that  the Grand Fishing Hotel was far better than what it was when it was under the management of the Arewa Hotels .“They were doing their best then because resources were being harnessed here and there, to effect renovation maintenance or recondition, where ever it is needed in the hotel. The people then were really strategic, with a reasonable number of good staff to make the hotel more functional than what it is today”

He argued that it is disheartening to observe that it is only during the fishing festival that the hotel records some reasonable level of patronage, when government has the capacity to make it more functional throughout the year.

“There is no doubt that the geographical location of the hotel is affecting its level of patronage. But I have on many occasions adviced   the government on how it could be made functional, with or without the Argungu fishing festival event. Look at that building there. It had been gutted by fire a long time ago now. If it were to be under the Arewa Hotels, they would have done something about it. When you have a management where resources are being harnessed from every nook and cranny, you don’t expect its management not to be better than what you find today.” Dr Umar said the problems facing the hotel are multi-dimensional.

“If there is no circulation of money in the state and the country as a whole and the hotel is situated at a distance from the town, you realize that not much will be achieved. In the states we have the chambers of commerce and so on. The government has to wake up to its responsibilities. If ventures like the Grand Fishing Festival are not made to be profitable, it means there is no way anything can be achieved. It turns out to be a pro government operating system where it is not for profit making, but just for providing services and that is not the purpose of hotels”.  

He stressed further that for the hotel to be functional, the state government will have to take some measures that will attract investors everywhere. “But I don’t think our government understands that concept, or let me assume they don’t know, or maybe, they know, but they are not pro development.”

Argungu Grand Fishing Hotel, since it started operations, has been under different managements. At inception, it was managed by Arewa Hotels Ltd .Its period under Arewa was regarded as its glorious period. However, its management was taken over by the Kebbi State government before it was transferred to All States Travels and Tours Ltd, before it was later taken over again by the State Government Hotels and Tourism Board.

Even with this, the situation in terms of its effective management, patronage and functional services has not improved, compared to its days under the Arewa hotels management.

Instead, the fortunes of the hotel began to decline without attempts by the government or the private sector to put back life into the ailing hotel.

Dr Umar insisted, ‘except the government intervenes and rise to its responsibilities, Argungu Grand Fishing Hotel may remain in its comatose position for a long time.  “Like I said earlier, there is need for government to zone its seminars, conferences symposium and retreats to the hotel, if it must revive it  to the character of its glorious days. If the initiator of the hotel, Shehu Muhammad Kangiwa were to turn in his grave, he would be sad to see what has been done to one of the legacies he left behind,” he lamented.