Hoteliers Association, Oyo state has declared full support for the forthcoming “Vibing December” initiative, describing it as a noble idea that will further energize Oyo State’s festive season and boost the local economy.
President of the Association Ayodele Ogundele while addressing Journalists at a press conference held at Davies Hotel In Ibadan said the programme would make the state “vibrant and fantastic throughout the Yuletide,”
He announced a 10 per cent discount on hotel rooms across participating facilities to encourage massive patronage.
He also commended Governor Seyi Makinde for the administration’s impressive investment in road networks and other infrastructure, noting that the improved roads have significantly eased movement for residents and visitors.
To strengthen the success of the event, Ogundele urged hotel owners to embark on individual and collective publicity efforts, including placing banners and adverts to promote Vibing December.
On security, he assured that the state government has put adequate measures in place, but called on hoteliers to intensify internal surveillance to curb the activities of criminals within their facilities.
However, the association expressed deep concern over what he described as multiple and exploitative taxation currently confronting hospitality businesses in the state.
According to him, hoteliers have increasingly become targets of “consultants of all sorts,” including non-state actors who allegedly hide under government authority to extort hotel operators.
“Even the taxes that are mandatory have become exploitative. We are being targeted by individuals claiming to be working for the government. Some even go as far as carrying padlocks and chains to lock up hotels,” he lamented.
Ogundele also faulted the imposition of emission taxes on generators used by hotels, saying operators resort to alternative power only because public electricity remains unreliable. “We pay emission tax on the generator we use. It’s not our wish to use generators. If government provides stable electricity, we won’t need them,” he said.
He appealed to the Makinde administration to urgently address the challenge of multiple taxation, recalling that the government introduced a harmonised tax system during its first term—a system he said gave hoteliers clarity and reduced arbitrary charges.
“When the Seyi Makinde administration came in, they gave us harmonised taxes, and we knew what we were paying on a single document. What we have now is arbitrary and a form of extortion,” he added.
Ogundele urged the government to ensure that the new tax law being proposed truly addresses the concerns of the hospitality industry and restores order to the revenue collection process.
