SSNIT Hotel Sale: Rock City Hotel withdraws bid

Rock City Hotel, the highest bidder for the six Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) hotels, says it will not proceed with the transaction.The Company in a letter dated July 12, 2024, and addressed to the Director General of SSNIT, said the decision to withdraw the bid was due to stakeholder concerns over the sale of the hotels.It said 'negative' public commentary about the transaction indicated that SSNIT did not 'engage stakeholders enough' on the decision to sell its 60 percent stake in the six hotels.'At all material times, we believed that we had participated in an internationally competitive bid and we were happy to have learned of our success, having edged out the 15 other organisations in the process.'It, therefore, came as a surprise to us that some of your stakeholders have raised concerns about your decision to seek a strategic partner for these hotels.'Following for the commentary monitored…We believe that such negativity is not only injurious to our brand but also jeopar dises the success of the investment we intend to make in these hotels,' Rock City said in the letter.Rock City also gave consent to SSNIT to publish 'all or parts' of the bid documents for public scrutiny, 'in the interest of accountability and transparency when it becomes necessary'.The hotels in which SSNIT is offloading its assets are the Labadi Beach Hotel, La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, Ridge Royal Hotel, Busua Beach Resort, Trust Lodge and Elmina Beach Resort.The National Pension Regulatory Authority (NPRA) had previously asked SSNIT to suspend its negotiations with Rock City, pending further evaluation and engagement.At a press conference in Accra, last Monday, Mr Kofi Osafo-Maafo, Director General (SSNIT), said the decision to sell the Trust's sixty percent stake in the hotels was to 'improve profitability' and ensure that the SSNIT scheme was sustained in the long-term.He explained, among other things, that the move was 'consistent' with the strategy and investment policy of the Trust.In the wake of public concerns, SSNIT said discussions regarding the sale of the hotels began in 2018, with the bidding and evaluation processes gone through 'transparent and lengthy processes', stressing that the Trust was engaging stakeholders on various negotiations regarding the sale of the hotels.Source: Ghana News Agency