The building required extensive renovation when the project was handed over.
The Manhattan Grand Hotel, officially opened last Saturday night, became a reality because of President Dr Mohamed Muizzu’s clear vision for the country, the hotel’s Managing Director, Ibrahim Naeem, has said.
He made the remarks while speaking about the work carried out by World of Business Pvt Ltd to develop a building that had remained abandoned and incomplete for many years.
Ibrahim Naeem said the building, which STO had originally planned to develop as a city hotel, had remained unfinished for an extended period. Recognising the need to complete the project, he said, a letter was sent to President Dr Mohamed Muizzu requesting that the development work be handed over to World of Business Pvt Ltd. The President accepted the request and expressed confidence that the project could be taken forward.
Naeem said the President’s decision not to allow the building to remain abandoned, and instead to facilitate its development, clearly reflected his vision for the country. He added that the decision demonstrated the President’s love and commitment to the nation.
“I was very happy. When someone I do not know, and with whom I have had no approach or dealings, makes such an important decision, it convinces me that he is a leader who genuinely loves his country,” the Managing Director of Manhattan Grand Hotel, Ibrahim Naeem, said.
He explained that when World of Business Pvt Ltd took over the project, the building was in a severely deteriorated condition and required major renovation work. Nevertheless, the company decided to undertake the project because it wanted to ensure that the property would generate benefits for the country and its people.
The Manhattan Grand Hotel building was originally constructed under the City Hotel project, which was initiated in 2007 with the aim of generating US dollar revenue for STO. However, work on the building had remained stalled for more than 10 years.
Last year, following instructions from the President, HDC reimbursed STO for the expenses it had incurred on the project before handing it over to a private party to develop the property into a city hotel.
