Acting Tourism Minister Irfaan Ali has slammed recent comments in the media linking the construction of the Marriott Hotel with that of the potential oil and gas industry in Guyana. Ali told this newspaper that he read a recent letter from a technician, which was published in the media and sought to link the two.
The minister said “it is utter nonsense” and takes away from the real picture what the project is being developed for, which is to help boost Guyana’s tourism capacity and not specifically for the potential oil sector.
According to him, while it will help with accommodating foreign nationals once such an industry is developed, that is not the main focus.
He said the Marriott has an integral and important role to play in the tourism sector and tourism is going to benefit tremendously from the project.
“We are going to work to ensure this occurs. The Marriott is an asset for the tourism sector and we see a lot of other developments taking place,” Ali added.
He reiterated the benefits that could be derived from the project, even though there continues to be much controversy surrounding the project in its entirety.
President Donald Ramotar also said the construction of the Marriott Hotel is necessary for the nation, given the country’s potential for tourism.
According to the president, there has been a concentrated effort by the opposition aligned media which have been trying continuously to mislead the nation about the benefits of the Marriott Hotel.
He stated that in Barbados and Trinidad, there are hotels which are being run by the state, and in both cases, the hotels are the classiest ones.
The Hyatt and Hilton hotels were pointed out as having been built by the governments in those countries and are attracting tourists, although none of the two countries have the tourism potential like Guyana.
Ramotar had also stated that once oil is discovered, Guyana may not even have the capacity to accommodate the number of persons who will flock the country.
He said the construction of the five star hotel will indeed help in this area, but noted that it is not being specifically built for that purpose.
The Marriott is set to be ready by August next year and will help to boost employment, creating about 250 jobs. The hotel is part of the Marriott International which is a leading global hospitality company with over 3,500 hotels internationally.
