There is growing tension among hotel owners and landlords in Anambra State following threats by the state government to seize their properties if they fail to submit manifestos of tenants and lodgers in their homes and hotels.

Currently some tenants are beginning to evacuate from some parts of Anambra State to neighboring states while visitors now prefer to lodge at hotels outside the state due to the directive of the state government.

Recall that the Anambra State law stipulates that any house or hotel found to be harbouring criminals would be destroyed and the property taken over by the government.

This move, according to the state government, is aimed at fighting insecurity in the state as it contends that most kidnappers and other criminals use those facilities as a hideout and places where kidnap victims are kept.

Already the landlords have kick started the process of collecting data and identity of their tenants for fear of forfeiting their properties while the hotel owners have come up with conditions for admitting potential customers into their hotels.

A hotel owner, Chief Emma Nwankwo, told Saturday Telegraph that they do not have any other options than to comply.

But he was also quick to add that it is already affecting business as most potential lodgers and even regular customers are not comfortable with the new directives.

“This is where I make my money and I have two hotels here in Anambra State and I cannot afford to allow the government to take over my sweat but you know that our business is now being affected,” he said.

Nwankwo urged the Anambra State government to review the taxes and levies on hotels and hospitality business lamenting that they cannot afford to be paying the same amount since the business has been affected by the new laws.

According to the directive signed by the Special Adviser to Gov Charles Soludo on Community Security, Prince Kenneth Emeakayi, it read in parts:

“All hotel owners must ensure that every guest lodging in their facility must submit a copy of any government means of identification like National Identity Card, International passports or Voters Card to the hotel.

“The hotel must photocopy all these documents and submit to the president general of the community who in turn submits to the local government mayor and then to the State government.

“Any hotel or guest house which fails to submit these documents will forfeit his or her lodging facility to the government and will equally answer for such offence.

“All landlords and landlady must go to their president general and obtain a form for their various tenants occupying their houses or shops.

“All landlords and landlady must ensure they know every detail about their tenants in their houses or shops through the forms they will fill using any government means of identification.

“Any landlords or landlady who fails to submit all the forms filled by his or her tenants to the government through the president general shall forfeit his or her building and also answer for the offence.”

The President Generals of the Communities in Anambra State were also part of the security operatives’ staff of the Agunaechemba Security Squad as they were made Chairman of the Agunaechemba Security Squad.

Emeakayi further directed that “All presidents general of every town must know that they are now the chairman of the security committee of Agunaechemba in their various communities and must take charge of the daily operations of Agunaechemba security outfit.

“Every president general must give detailed reports on monthly basis about the security operations on monthly basis to the government and any president general who fails to submit these monthly reports stands suspended and will face the full sanctions by the government.

“Finally the public are encouraged to key into the whistleblowing policy of the government by reporting kidnappers and be rewarded ranging from N5 million and above,” he noted.