Abia State government has said that the new Government House commissioned by the immediate past administration a day to hand over, lacked necessary facilities and was built inside a private residential area that could expose the life of the governor to several security threats.
To this end, the State government said that the gigantic building would now be converted to a five-star hotel.
The Commissioner for Information, Okey Kanu, who disclosed this on Thursday while conducting journalists round the building, said the government house structure did not have a functional elevator, while the interior of the upper floors was in shambles without necessary facilities.
Kanu observed that only the first floor of the Government House was completed and furnished, while the upper ones were exposed to many structural defects despite huge public funds that were spent on the project.
He debunked the statements made by the former Commissioner for Information, John Okiyi Kalu where he had accused Governor Alex Otti of ruling Abia State with propaganda against the past administration of Okezie Ikpeazu.
“This place is not habitable and if you look around the Government House where it is situated, you will see a lot of private buildings around here looking into this place.
“From the point of security, it is not even ideal for the Governor to live in and it could pose a serious security risk for the Governor to live in, assuming he were to live here.
“The government of the day has decided to turn this place into a five-star hotel. The reason is that this place was not well built”, Kanu said.