BAYELSA @ 30: PDP FAULTS LAVISH ANNIVERSARY, LAMENTS 22-YEAR DELAY IN TOWER HOTEL PROJECT

YENAGOA — The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bayelsa State, has criticised the elaborate activities marking the state’s 30th anniversary, describing the celebration as insensitive to the economic challenges confronting many residents.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, September 30, 2026, and signed by the State Publicity Secretary of the party, Hon. Ikaebimo Mark, the PDP said the anniversary celebrations were taking place against the backdrop of what it described as widespread hunger, poverty, unemployment and limited economic opportunities.

The party argued that, while the state government had rolled out a series of activities to mark three decades of Bayelsa’s creation, greater attention should be given to projects and policies capable of directly improving the welfare and economic prospects of citizens.

The Bayelsa State Government had announced a programme of activities for the 30th anniversary, including cultural events, sporting activities, an anniversary lecture, a praise night, a children’s party and an anniversary dinner and awards ceremony.

The PDP particularly expressed concern over the continued non-completion of the Bayelsa Tower Hotel in Yenagoa, describing the project as a symbol of abandoned public investment.

“The Bayelsa Tower Hotel, which has hung over the heart of Yenagoa for 22 years despite the enormous public resources committed to it, has become a monument of disgrace and ridicule to our dear state,” the statement said.

The party further alleged that the continued neglect of the hotel and other abandoned projects, while public funds were being committed to anniversary festivities, reflected what it called “misplaced priorities and reckless disregard for the prevailing economic hardship confronting Bayelsans.”

The Tower Hotel and Conference Centre was conceived as a major hospitality and conference facility in Yenagoa. Available project records describe it as an 18-storey hotel and conference-centre development, while the Bayelsa State Government has previously acknowledged that the multi-storey project had been abandoned and said it was seeking investors willing to take it over under negotiable terms.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan also recently recalled that his administration had awarded contracts for the Tower Hotel and two other hotels, lamenting that the projects were not completed after he left office.

The PDP said Bayelsa’s 30th anniversary should therefore provide an opportunity for sober reflection on the state’s development trajectory rather than merely an occasion for celebration.

“At 30, Bayelsa deserves more than pomp and pageantry; it deserves accountability, completed projects, jobs, economic opportunities and a government that prioritises the welfare of its people,” the party stated.

It urged the state government to reconsider its priorities and channel greater public resources towards completing abandoned projects, creating employment and expanding economic opportunities for residents.

“The PDP therefore urges the government to reflect on the real condition of Bayelsans and redirect public resources and attention from extravagant celebrations towards addressing the pressing needs of the people,” the statement added.

Bayelsa State was created on October 1, 1996, from the former Rivers State.