By Clement Warrie On Tuesday, October 21, 2025, after returning from the flag-off ceremony for the ARISE Youth Friendly Center in Nsit Ubium, I decided to make a brief stopover at the Tropicana Mall on Udoudoma Avenue to pick up some groceries. As I exited the mall, my ears were pricked by the sibilance of heavy construction work at the Ibom International Hotel, located less than 400 meters within the 82-hectares of the Tropicana complex. Drawn by curiosity, I skirted around the mall to the construction site. It was a busy hive of industry, swarming with haulage trucks, day laborers, engineers, and safety professionals in reflective gear. And towering over it all was the gigantic 14-storey hotel building, wrapped in skeletal scaffolding. A few men as little as birds, perched on the steel framework, while a massive crane arched close to the building. For over 15 years, this 200-room, abandoned 14-storey hotel stood in infamy, with its massive grey concrete and sun-bleached ...