Juba hotel expels South Sudan’s NPTC guests over unpaid bill

April 21, 2020 (JUBA) – A Juba 4-star hotel has requested the National Pre-Transitional Committee (NPTC) tasked with the oversight of the pre-transitional period to evacuate its 38 rooms as the government failed to pay their accommodation bill for one year.

In a letter sent to the NPTC head Tut Gatluak Manime who is also a close aide to President Salva Kiir on 21 April, the Palm Africa Hotel management said the government did not honour the nearly $2 million bill of the 38 Committee’s guests despite their repeated demands.

“The outstanding hotel accommodation bill of 38 NPTC members for 12 months now amounts to USD 1,999,580 (one million nine hundred ninety-nine thousand five hundred eighty USD), covering the period till April 21, 2020,” said the letter, seen by Sudan Tribune.

The hotel’s management pointed out they are no longer in a position to sustain the 38 NPTC guests due to low business volume and the poor condition of rooms.

“Therefore, we request the 32 guests reallocated to another destination by the 30th April 2020. We can only be able to accommodate 6 (Six) rooms only due to their critical duties to the government”.

Another hotel in Juba, Crown Hotel, had a similar experience with the NPTC last year.

In a June 29, 2019 notice to the government, Crown Hotel management threatened to close the rooms of the NPTC delegates if bills were not paid.

South Sudanese government had to extend the pre-transitional period for nearly a year because it failed to ensure the needed money to implement the security arrangements and to resolve the number of states issue.

(ST)