#hospitality jobs in lagos June 2017 | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

walterfrodriguez · 4 years ago

Text

Record-breaking surge in Covid cases spells trouble for South Florida’s hotel market

From left: The Fontainebleau Miami Beach, Shore Club and Clevelander South Beach

Jeffrey Soffer’s iconic Fontainebleau Miami Beach was among the first of the city’s hotels to reopen on June 1, after the majority were shut down for the entire month of May.

The sponsors of the 1,500-room oceanfront resort — whose hallways have been graced by Elvis Presley, Lucille Ball, and more recently, Jennifer Lopez and Kim Kardashian West — spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on the reopening.

Jeffrey Soffer, CEO of Fontainebleau Development

Preparations included the purchase of electrostatic sprayers, thermometers and hand sanitizer dispensers throughout the property, as well as training employees in the latest health and safety protocols. And as it prepared to reopen its doors, the luxury hotel planned to hire 500 employees back in the first couple weeks, adding more as occupancy returned.

“We’re cautiously optimistic that people are making reservations,” Philip Goldfarb, president and CEO of the hospitality division of Soffer’s Fontainebleau Development, said at the time.

But of the more than 2,000 employees who were temporarily laid off due to the pandemic, the Fontainebleau ended up bringing back just 774 by July. About 1,300 workers were recently provided with a separation notice, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification that cited the effects of ongoing restrictions on travel and large gatherings, as well as the hotel’s low occupancy.

At the same time, a $975 million CMBS loan backing the resort is stuck in special servicing, a situation the hotel’s owners say occured because they are seeking modifications to the loan.

The Fontainebleau is not alone.

“No hotel can operate on less than 20 percent occupancy. The numbers don’t work.”

Suzanne Amaducci-Adams, Bilzin Sumberg

After Florida began to lift its stay-at-home orders, positive cases of Covid-19 skyrocketed. As of July 13, following a daily record for the U.S. with 15,300 cases reported in 24 hours, there have been more than 282,000 cases and 4,277 deaths documented in the state.

That, coupled with closures of the beaches and countywide curfews, led to already low occupancy rates taking another hit. Many hotels — banking on being sold out for the 4th of July weekend — ended up with significant cancellations.

The start-and-stop of the market spells trouble for South Florida’s hotels, with distressed sales expected to occur later this year. That’s reflective of an even bigger problem for the state’s business activity and real estate markets. Since the pandemic began, close to 3 million people in Florida have reportedly filed for unemployment, with the accommodation and food services industry seeing the highest number of jobless claims.

Suzanne Amaducci-Adams, Bilzin Sumberg

“Until we have a steady stream of income from travelers, the hotels are not going to be able to function properly and not be able to meet their obligations,” said Suzanne Amaducci-Adams, a partner and head of real estate at Bilzin Sumberg, a major commercial law firm based in Miami.

“No hotel can operate on less than 20 percent occupancy,” she added. “The numbers don’t work.”

Survival tactics

Dozens of hotels are in a similar situation as the Fontainebleau and tens of thousands of hospitality workers have lost their jobs in South Florida alone.

The Trump Organization, for example, laid off nearly 800 employees in March, including many at the president’s Mar-a-Lago resort and club in Palm Beach. Alan Lieberman’s South Beach Hotel Group and the Loews Hotel each laid off more than 700 employees.

And with air travel, occupancy and room rates still low, the layoffs will likely last longer than originally anticipated.

Occupancy among South Florida’s hotels that haven’t shut down completely exceeded 30 percent during the week of July 4, according to data from the hotel research firm STR. But while that’s an increase from earlier in the pandemic, it marks a 54 percent annual decline.

The average daily rate was $124, a 24 percent drop from the same week last year, and revenue per available room was $42, down 65 percent year over year, per STR.

A majority of hotels secured loan deferments or concessions that were set to expire by July, and a good chunk of the high season was lost to coronavirus. Like most commercial real estate, any hotel sales that were in the pipeline were either canceled or indefinitely placed on hold.

Before the pandemic, 2020 was supposed to be a banner year for South Florida’s hotels — after the market faced setbacks from the Zika outbreak in 2016 and Hurricane Irma in 2017.

Super Bowl LIV (Getty)

Super Bowl LIV, which Miami hosted in early February, was a boon for local hotels. That weekend, the average daily rate increased almost 150 percent year-over-year, with occupancy rising above 90 percent. Following that, hotels had other events to look forward to: 2020’s Ultra Music Festival in March, the Miami Open in April, and weeks of Spring Break.

“Most hotels were having sort of the best year in five or six years,” said Max Comess, managing director of Hodges Ward Elliott’s Miami office. But all of the big events lined up for the spring were eventually canceled.

Hotel owners and operators typically budget a loss for the slow season, Comess noted, but with the high season cut short, it’s almost impossible to say which hotels will make it through the rest of the year.

“No one knows when the market will really start to bounce back without a vaccine for Covid-19 and a return of consumer confidence in travel,” he added. “Business travel is non-existent, and most Americans are now vacationing in areas they can drive to.”

After being shut down on March 23, Florida’s hotels were allowed to reopen beginning June 1. But many owners are waiting until August or September to start welcoming guests, while others continue to delay their opening dates due to increased restrictions and low demand.

Among those that are still closed are the Standard Spa Miami Beach, the JW Marriott Marquis Miami, Four Seasons Hotel Miami, the Shore Club, the Gale South Beach, and Novotel Miami Brickell, according to their websites.

The Clevelander South Beach (Getty)

The Clevelander South Beach, a popular party hotel on Ocean Drive, voluntarily closed its doors in July. A notice posted on its website said it was closed until further notice “due to public health concerns” caused by Covid-19.

“Some hotel owners are opting to stay closed,” Amaducci-Adams said. “Hotel owners have never really been faced with that horrible decision before.”

A deal drought

Some big deals that were in the works prior to the pandemic are also on ice.

Richard Branson’s Virgin Hotels — an offshoot of the billionaire entrepreneur’s Virgin Group — had prepared a 46-page offering package for the Shore Club in South Beach, a self-described “Art Deco labyrinth of gardens and alcoves” on Collins Avenue.

Richard Branson

The hotel group had been searching for a flagship property in Miami Beach for years, and seemed to have found it in the 309-room Shore Club owned by Ziel Feldman’s HFZ Capital Group.

Then the pandemic hit.

“Once institutional lenders start saying no, they’re all going to start saying no.”

Luis Flores, Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr

Virgin was seeking to acquire and redevelop the Shore Club for roughly $335 million. The proposal, obtained by The Real Deal, included a purchase price of $235 million and upgrades that would cost an additional $100 million.

HFZ acquired the hotel in late 2013, with plans to redevelop the historic property into luxury condominiums, but canceled plans three years ago and returned buyers’ deposits due to the slow condo market.

Virgin was aiming to close on the property in the first quarter of 2020, break ground a year later, and open as early as August 2022. But the deal has been tabled indefinitely, as the market overall remains on hold.

Barry Sternlicht, Starwood Capital Group

What happened with the Shore Club is telling for other significant hotel deals in the works prior to the pandemic, in major cities across the country. Some investors, including Barry Sternlicht’s Starwood Capital Group, are on the hunt for deeply discounted hotels.

“We have a pretty deep background in hotels, and I’m willing to buy cheap real estate in the hotel space because I believe in the asset class,” Sternlihct told TRD in a May interview. “I think I know what we can do with them.”

But Miguel Pinto, president and broker of Apex Capital Realty, said for investors who need access to bank financing, even buying distressed hotel assets could be a challenge.

“Banks, for the most part, don’t want to touch hotels today,” he said. “It’s a big risk for them to have hotels in their portfolio — especially at high loan-to-value ratios.

“Without the lending from banks, hotel transactions tend to be very difficult,” he added.

“Completely frozen”

Lenders are unsure of when the market will return and how to value properties.

International and business travel are non-existent, domestic travel is limited, and the cruise line industry, which feeds hotels, is still shut down.

As a result, hotels are “not exactly the most attractive lending asset class right now,” said J.C. de Ona, president of Centennial Bank’s Southeast Florida division. “How do you underwrite a hotel not knowing when they’re going to get profitable right now?”

And the timeline for a recovery is to be determined. The weekend of July 4th was expected to be a “turning point,” Ona said, but once the beaches were closed, hotel owners saw cancellations left and right.

“Are they going to get back to normal? Yes, but it could take a couple of years,” he noted. “At what point do banks get comfortable that the environment is getting better? That’s the unknown.”

Centennial isn’t actively looking to lend on any hotel deals in South Florida, though de Ona said the bank wouldn’t rule it out entirely — depending on the borrower.

Boaz Ashbel, Aztec Group

Boaz Ashbel, managing director of the Miami-based debt brokerage Aztec Group, said the lending market is “completely frozen.”

“Most lenders right now are evaluating every single hotel loan they have, trying to determine what kind of risk they have and how to eliminate it,” he said.

Just a small handful of non-traditional lenders will offer “very high-priced loans” that are designed to be more like bridge and short-term loans “to buy enough time to allow a borrower to get over the pandemic,” Ashbel added.

Most loan agreements include a measuring point to ensure hotels are producing enough income to cover the debt service, said attorney Luis Flores of the law firm Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr.

If properties are barely covering their mortgage payments, it could trigger a higher interest rate. Lenders could start to foreclose if the hotel isn’t generating enough money.

“At some point, that breathing room is going to expire and the water is going to boil over,” Flores added. “Once institutional lenders start saying no, they’re all going to start saying no. It will be like a brush fire, it will start to spread very quickly.”

Desperate times

Borrowers with securitized commercial mortgages will likely be the first to default, according to several industry sources.

CMBS loans are typically hardest to renegotiate and hotels dependent on large groups and conventions could take the largest time to recover, Ashbel said.

That could be especially true for Soffer’s Fontainebleau, the largest hotel in Miami-Dade, known for hosting conventions and star-studded concerts.

Typically, about 50 percent of the Fontainebleau’s business comes from group bookings and conventions; leisure travelers take up the other half.

And the hotel’s nearly $1 billion CMBS loan is the largest to go into special servicing in South Florida. Though special servicing is usually triggered by two missed payments, the hotel is on up to speed on its debt service, according to Trepp.

“We’re still working through [loan] modifications,” Brett Mufson, president of Fontainebleau Development, told TRD in July. “We remain in compliance and are not in default.��

The Fontainebleau Miami Beach

There’s a big gap between Fontainebleau’s loan and the next CMBS loan on a South Florida hotel to go into special servicing: the nearly $114 million mortgage backing the Grand Beach Hotel.

The top five CMBS hotel loans in special servicing, per Trepp, are for a variety of properties throughout Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties, and no hotel owner is immune, industry sources say.

Real estate investment banking firm Lotus Capital Partners, led by founder and CEO Faisal Ashraf, is working on behalf of lenders on debt restructurings with several hotel owners. That includes reallocating furniture, fixtures, and equipment reserves to make their debt payments and arranging forbearance agreements, Ashraf said.

“Large hotels will be very slow to come out of the gate or be fundamentally changed forever,” Ashraf said. “I think the second round of forbearances is when the claws come out and it could coincide with the lifting of all of these moratoriums.”

Once lender concessions run out, many hotel owners will be forced to spend more of their own capital, sell their debt, or sell their properties.

Most owners aren’t yet desperate, but some “will be forced to make decisions based on their liquidity situation,” said Scott Berman, a principal at PricewaterhouseCoopers, who leads the hospitality and leisure practice for the firm.

“Cash is king and liquidity is essential,” Berman added.

Publicly, many owners have been holding firm, expressing confidence that the market will bounce back in a matter of time. But, behind closed doors, some are also sizing up their options should that take longer than they hope.

“We have knowledge of many hotels [where] the owners want out,” said Pinto of Apex Capital. “You won’t see them hit the market for now, but we are getting calls from the owners to bring them offers. They want out.”

The post Record-breaking surge in Covid cases spells trouble for South Florida’s hotel market appeared first on The Real Deal Miami.

from The Real Deal Miami & Miami Florida Real Estate & Housing News | & Curbed Miami - All https://therealdeal.com/miami/2020/07/20/record-breaking-surge-in-covid-cases-spells-trouble-for-south-floridas-hotel-market/ via IFTTT

#The Real Deal Miami & Miami Florida Real Estate & Housing News | & Curbed Miami - All

0 notes

newsnigeria · 6 years ago

Text

Check out New Post published on Ọmọ Oòduà

New Post has been published on http://ooduarere.com/entertainment/the-buzz-central/kizz-daniel-and-chidinma-star-in-love-me/

Kizz Daniel And Chidinma Star In New Romantic Comedy Movie “Love Me”

A romantic comedy ‘Love me’ is set to debut on the Nigerian movie scene and other markets across Africa.

Away from the usual love stories characteristic of Nigerian home videos, ‘Love me’ comes across in style, class, technique and the whole gamut a Hollywood crafted kind of production, sure to keep audiences on a viewing bliss.

According to producer of the new movie, the work which promises a lot of entertainment value for members of the public, is currently being shot in Lagos. The cast and crew of the movie will shift location to Dubai in the UAE next month.

‘Love me’, according to the producer, teaches the values of having a strong character and the courage to make the right choices, while also addressing true friendship as one that ought to remain constant when situations oscillate between the good and the bad.

With a stellar cast, which include Kizz Daniel, Chidinma Ekile, Alex Ekubo, Ngozi Nwosu, Broda Shaggi, Ann Idibia and a host of others, the movie is sure to drive viewers to the cinemas through their influence and their huge social media following as well as its engaging content.

Produced by one of the respected names in the entertainment industry, Dozie Atueyi, the movie is expected to leverage all available platforms to engage audiences nationwide and beyond.

Here is more to know bout “Love Me” Africa to America Production has announced their upcoming romantic comedy movie titled Love Me. The cinematic project which is set in an hotel in Lagos and Dubai, will be released sometime in June. At a press briefing on Thursday, the head honcho of the production firm Dozie David Atuenyi, who also doubles as the movie producer explained that “Last year we conceptualise this production titled Love Me. The concept is the search for love through several different avenues. The whole idea is this which is about the representation of the heart desire.

“So it’s not just about the man woman relationship. In our story we have the lead character that is in a relationship but is unfulfilled. And she searches for something higher and when she finds it, she’s still not satisfied and she realizes that she got everything she wanted but lost what she needed. It’s a very interesting storyline.”

The movie stars Nigerian singer and songwriter Chidinma Ekile in the lead role. Chidinma it would be recalled cut her teeth in the film industry by been a part of Kunle Afolayan’s movie titled The Bridge in 2017. This would be the petit songstress’s second movie.

Alongside Chidinma in the lead role is another Nigerian singer, Kizz Daniel. Love Me features several other screen favourites with huge following and influence among movie lovers across Africa and beyond. They include Ngozi Nwosu, Wale Ojo, Annie Idibia, Broda Shaggi, Alexx Ekubo, Linda Ejiofor Sulaiman, Nedu, Sharon Ooja and Timini Egbuson; all of whom will be sure to drive viewers to the cinemas through their influence, huge social media following and engaging content that will be promoted extensively via their channels and accounts. Atuenyi however noted that one of the things the production decided to do was to bring specific individuals who have excellence in their fields that could be brought to bear on the production. This in the sense that it carefully selected the people believed will bring value to that role, to that character. He explained that for instance the lead character Chidinma playing the role of Kemi Taiwo, is a different personality and that there’s a big difference between Chidinma and Kemi. On the choice of Chidinma and Kizz Daniel on the set, the producer said the casting followed a process which was done on individual characters and not casting to pair two people but individual characters and the traits of each character and who best suit that role.

Speaking further on the work, Atuenyi who boasts of 17 years cognate experience in theatre production said “we believe this will be the establishment of Chidinma as an actor. We have to reach out to some people who have proficiency in their field. We sort a director who we have worked with in the past and whose meticulous attention to detail was necessary to execute this project. His name is Felix Odion. He came all the way from Australia just to direct this project. Because some of our actors are new in the field, we also looked for someone (Israeli born Ronya Man) who could train these people to be able to deliver not just in Nollywood standard but something that could be comparable to what exist in Hollywood.”

Love Me. tells the story of Kemi Taiwo, (Chidinma Ekile) who works in the Housekeeping department of Gideon’s Hotel, a 4 star concern. By day, she carries out her thankless job of cleaning rooms and suites domiciled by the high and mighty. By night, she and her colleagues and closest friends, Kevwe, cynical realist, and Ada, a diehard romantic, dream of better days and deep pockets. The poor wages and pains of working for a slave driving boss are not enough to hold Kemi down. She dreams of owning her own hotel someday and is saving for an expensive hospitality course which will serve as a first step to realizing her dream. Her boyfriend, Kachi, a goofy accountant, is as economical with cash as Nigeria is with distributing electricity.

He more than makes up for it by being a sweet friend and great lover, not to mention, highly beloved by Kemi’s charmingly oddball parents. One day, Kemi has a chance meeting with Daniel, Nigeria’s top music star, and manages to bowl him over. Daniel, smitten, stops at nothing to win her heart but Kemi resists, shunning his expensive gifts and grand moves, believing that Daniel is on a ‘hit and run’ mission. Soon, it is clear Daniel wants more than to make Kemi a conquest. He genuinely likes her. A confused Kemi is further shaken by her friends’ conflicting counsel. Kevwe urges her to ditch Kachi for Daniel, arguing for financial security; while Ada pushes for Kemi to stay with Kachi, arguing for happily ever-after. Daniel ups the ante on his quest for Kemi’s heart, firing every weapon in his romantic arsenal. Unable to resist any longer, Kemi starts to fall for the superstar.

#Entertainment Gist

0 notes

thisdaynews · 6 years ago

Text

President Buhari’s 2018 Democracy Day Speech

New Post has been published on https://www.thisdaynews.net/2018/05/29/president-buharis-2018-democracy-day-speech/

President Buhari’s 2018 Democracy Day Speech

ADDRESS BY MUHAMMADU BUHARI , PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA IN COMMEMORATION OF THE 2018 DEMOCRACY DAY CELEBRATION , TUESDAY, 29 TH MAY, 2018

My Dear Nigerians !

Today marks the 19 th year of our nascent democracy and the 3 rd Anniversary of this administration . I am thankful to Almighty God for bringing us thus far . This administration came at a time that Nigerians needed Change, the Change we promised and the Change we continue to deliver . We have faced a lot of challenges on this journey and Nigerians have stood by us in achieving the three cardinal points of this administration namely; Security , Corruption and the Economy . 2 . The commemoration of this year ’s Democracy Day is a celebration of freedom , a salute to the resilience and determination of Nigerians and a recommitment by Government to keep its promise to lead Nigeria into a new era of justice and prosperity . 3 . Public safety and security remains the primary duty of this Government . Before this Administration came into being 3 years ago, Boko Haram held large areas of land spanning several Local Governments in the North East . 4 . Today , the capacity of the insurgents has been degraded leading to the re -establishment of authority of government and the release of captives including , happily, 106 Chibok and 104 Dapchi girls, and over 16 , 000 other persons held by the Boko Haram. 5 . In order to minimize the impact of the insurgency on Internally Displaced Persons, Government has established secure IDP Camps and has improved the mechanism for the distribution of basic aid , foods and essential commodities using various strategies in collaboration with local and international Organizations . 6 . Efforts are in process for resettlement of IDPs in their home communities by providing schools , hospitals , clinics , water and sanitation to facilitate a quick return to economic activities . Government is similarly implementing de -radicalization and rehabilitation programmes to facilitate sustainable peace and development. 7 . The unfortunate incidences of kidnappings , herdsmen and farmers clashes in several communities which have led to high number of fatalities and loss of properties across the country is being addressed and the identified culprits and their sponsors shall be made to face the full wrath of the law . All the three tiers of Government are presently engaged with communities and religious organizations to restore peaceful co -existence among Nigerians . 8 . I want to commend members of the Multinational Joint Task Force drawn from Niger, Benin , Chad , Cameroon and our own country in collaboration with the International Community who are assisting in the fight against insurgency in the North East . I also commend the gallantry of members of our Armed Forces and other security agencies that have continued to provide security for lives and properties across the country . State and Local traditional authorities are helping with much needed intelligence in this fight against insurgency. 9 . This administration is pained over the grievous loss of lives and properties occasioned by the carnage of insurgency and other forms of criminality in the country . I wish to assure Nigerians that we will not rest until all criminal elements and their sponsors are brought to justice . Government is boosting the capacity of our security agencies through recruitment of more personnel , training and procurement of modern equipment , enhancement of intelligence gathering as well as boosting their morale in the face of daunting challenges. 10 . The Niger Delta Region has enjoyed relative peace through social inclusiveness and cooperation of the Elders and the good people of the region. Government is committed to implementing the comprehensive peace , security and development plan for the region. The environmental clean – up of the region which commenced with the launch in Bodo , Ogoni in June , 2016 is progressing satisfactorily . Furthermore farming assets are being revived and investors in cocoa and palm oil plantations are showing serious interest . 11 . The second primary object of this Administration is to fight corruption headlong . Like I have always said , if we don’t kill corruption , corruption will destroy the country . Three years into this Administration , Nigerians and the international community have begun to applaud our policies and determination to fight corruption . We are more than ever before determined to win this war , however hard the road is. I therefore appeal to all well-meaning Nigerians to continue to support us in this fight . 12 . Various policy measures already put in place to stem the tide of corrupt practices are yielding remarkable results . Some of these key reform policies include: a . The Treasury Single Account ( TSA) has realized Billions of Naira being saved from maintenance fee payable to banks . N200 Billion has also been saved from elimination of ghost workers in public service . b . The Whistle -Blowing Policy has helped to recover over N500 Billion; c . The Presidential Initiative on Continuous Audit set up with a mandate to validate controls , assess risks , prune personnel costs , ensure compliance with Public Financial Management reforms has helped to identify and remove over 52 ,000 ghost workers from the Federal Government MDAs Payroll ; d . The Voluntary Asset and Income Declaration Scheme ( VAIDS ) aimed at expanding tax education and awareness has offered the opportunity for tax defaulters to regularise their status in order to enjoy the amnesty of forgiveness on overdue interest , penalties and the assurance of non -prosecution or subject to tax investigations . e . The Sovereign Wealth Fund project portfolio has been expanded with an injection of US $650 million so as to strengthen its investment in local infrastructure , power , health , re -construction of Abuja – Kano road , Lagos -Ibadan Expressway, East West Road ( Section V ) and the Mambilla Hydro -electric Power project as well as the construction of the 2 nd Niger Bridge . 13 . The fight against corruption through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has resulted in recoveries of Billions of Naira, as well as forfeiture of various forms of assets . This alongside other efforts has improved Nigeria ’s international image and regional cooperation . 14 . We have retained the services of one of the world’ s leading assets tracing firms to investigate and trace assets globally . This is in addition to the exploitation of provisions of existing Treaties , Conventions as well as Bilateral Agreements with Multilateral bodies and Nations . Nigeria has also signed Mutual Legal Assistance Agreements to ensure that there is no hiding place for fugitives . 15 . This Administration has therefore focused on revamping the ailing economy it inherited in 2015. In 2016, Government executed an expansionary budget and developed the Strategic Implementation Plan . For the first time , 30 % of the budget was earmarked for capital expenditure which represents an upward review when compared with the 2015 budget . The SIP was followed by the development of a comprehensive medium term plan – the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan 2017 – 2020 . 16 . The broad strategic objectives of the ERGP were to; Restore and sustain economic growth; Build a globally competitive economy ; and Invest in our people . The implementation of the ERGP has started yielding results . The National Bureau of Statistics reports that the economy grew by 1.95 % in 1 st quarter 2018, which is a good performance when viewed against – 0.91 in 1st quarter 2017 and -0 .67 % in 1 st quarter 2016 respectively . 17 . Our foreign reserve has improved significantly to 47 .5 billion USD as of May , 2018 as against 29 .6 billion USD in 2015 . The inflationary rate has consistently declined every month since January, 2017 . 18 . Recently , Government conducted Focus Labs in three key sectors of the Economy namely , Agriculture & Transport , Manufacturing and Processing as well as Power and Gas . These have yielded significant prospects for investments and Job creation to the tune of US$ 22 .5 billion with a potential for creating more than 500 ,000 jobs by 2020. These investment generation initiatives are expected to increase capital inflows in the form of foreign direct investment . There is a high prospect that the cumulative investments from this first phase of the Labs will hit US$ 39 . 2 billion by 2025. 19 . Under agriculture , Nigeria continues to pursue a strategic food security programme built around self -sufficiency and minimization of import dependency . As a result, rice importation from other countries has been cut down by 90 % which has a direct impact on foreign reserves . 20 . The Social Investment Programmes ( SIP ) has been created as a means to graduating our citizens from poverty through capacity building , investment and direct support . The major strategic objective is to restore livelihood , economic opportunities and sustenance for the poor across the country . The SIP programmes and projects include : a . Home Grown School Feeding Programme – About 8 .2 million pupils are currently being fed from 24 States of the Federation with over 75 ,000 Catering Staff engaged under the programme . b . The Conditional Cash Transfer has so far recorded over 297 ,000 caregivers and being trained by 2 ,495 Community Facilitators in 21 states . Less privileged Nigerians are now being paid N 5 ,000 monthly stipend in 9 pilot States of Bauchi, Borno , Cross River , Ekiti , Kwara , Kogi , Niger, Osun and Oyo. Eventually the scheme will cover all the 36 states of the federation including the FCT . c . Under the Government Enterprise Empowerment Programme – About 264 ,269 loans had been disbursed to 4 ,822 societies in the 36 States and FCT , while another 370 , 635 are awaiting release of funds . d . N -Power Job creation Scheme – is targeted at providing jobs for unemployed young graduates and has so far recruited 200 ,000 youths while the next batch of 300 ,000 have been selected , verified and would soon be deployed across the 36 States and the FCT . Furthermore, 20 ,000 non -graduate volunteers have also been selected to kick off the N – Build programme in collaboration with the National Automotive Design and Development Council and the Council of Registered Builders of Nigeria . 21 . In the area of power generation , Nigerians from all parts of the country continue to report better power supply and less use of generators . This underscores the effectiveness of the methodical plan to deliver incremental and uninterrupted power supply to our homes, markets , offices and factories . 22 . The country achieved 5 , 222 .3 MW representing the highest peak of power generated onto the national grid and delivered to customers in December , 2017. With new facilities , repairs and rehabilitations by Government and private investors , generation capability now exceeds 7 ,500 MW . 23 . This Administration is committed to lawful interventions to ensure the operators of the distribution business live up to expectations especially in the areas of distribution capacity, service delivery , collection efficiency, and metering to eliminate contentious estimated billing . 24 . The Transportation Sector continues to undergo a series of reforms in order to sustain the international best practices and ensure safety and security. The nation ’ s major airports have witnessed reconstruction of runways, installation of navigational equipment and new international terminals due for commissioning in Abuja , Lagos , Kano and Enugu. Bilateral Air Services Agreements between Nigeria and the Governments of other countries will significantly open up new flight routes . 25 . As a result of strict regulatory and compliance policies, Nigeria retained her Federal Aviation Administration ( FAA) Category 1 status , after a routine international audit . Recently , a new Maintenance Repair and Overhaul facility with capacity for aircraft C – checks and other comprehensive levels of maintenance was established in Lagos . This would save the country an estimated $90 m annually . 26 . Giant strides have been recorded over the past three years to improve road transport infrastructure in all geopolitical zones of the country . 27 . The Railway Sector has also received tremendous attention as this Administration is committed to the goal of linking all State capitals in the Federation by rail network to ease the movement of goods and passengers . 28 . The Education Sector especially at tertiary level has continued to witness expansion in order to improve access to higher education by millions of youths in Nigeria . Over the last three years , Government has approved the establishment of 1 new Federal Polytechnic, granted licenses for the establishment of 4 State and 14 private -owned Universities as well as 12 private Polytechnics . 29 . Government has also continued to support the implementation of various initiatives aimed at improving the quality of Basic Education delivery . Thus , it has ensured proper funding at the Basic Education level with the disbursement of N42 .2 billion UBE Matching Grant to 26 States and the FCT , N 851 .5 million Special Education Grant disbursed to 23 States and private providers of Special Education and N2 .2 billion Teachers Professional Development Fund to 33 States and the FCT . 30 . The Federal Government has continued to support fiscal sustainability at the sub- national governments through the implementation of the Budget Support Facility which was accompanied by the 22 – point Fiscal Sustainability Plan . Thus , bailouts funds were made available to States to ease their fiscal challenges and other obligations including payment of salaries . 31 . In addition , a total of 73 Ecological Fund projects for the control of gully erosion in different communities across all geopolitical zones have been completed in the last three years and are undergoing commissioning while 53 other projects are ongoing. The execution of these projects has generated 357 skilled jobs and 1 ,350 unskilled jobs during this period. 32 . It is pertinent to also make mention of the immeasurable contributions of the Nigerian woman to national development and advancement of democracy , over the last three years . The government and people appreciate you all as mothers of our great country . 33 . My dear country men and women , as we all celebrate our democratic experience, let us resolve to avoid hatred and intolerance ; we can only achieve our objectives in an atmosphere of harmony and peaceful co – existence. 34 . Finally, the up -coming months will usher us into another season of general elections . Let me use this opportunity to urge us all to conduct ourselves , our wards and our constituencies with the utmost sense of fairness , justice and peaceful co -existence such that we will have not only hitch free elections but also a credible and violence free process . 35 . In few days to come , I will be joined by many promising young Nigerians to sign into law the “Not Too Young to Run ” Bill 36 . I thank you for your attention . 37 . God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria .

0 notes

southeastblog · 7 years ago

Text

ANALYSIS: Buhari’s ministers’ scorecard after two years (1)

November 2017 marked two years that most of the ministers in President Muhammadu Buhari’s cabinet assumed office.

PREMIUM TIMES reviewed the performances of the ministers after their first year in office with many of them getting average scores.

Mr. Buhari inaugurated 36 ministers on November 11, 2015 to man 24 federal ministries. However, two of them are no longer in the cabinet. While the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, James Ocholi, SAN, died last year, Amina Mohammed left the cabinet to take up appointment at the UN as Deputy Secretary General.

In August 2017, Mr. Ocholi was replaced with Stephen Ocheni while Suleiman Hassan was sworn in as Minister of State for Power, Works and Housing.

PREMIUM TIMES presents the midterm scorecard of the ministers based on their promises on assumption of office and others they made thereafter.

1. Health

Minister: Isaac Adewole

State Minister: Osagie Ehanire

Promises:

-Revitalisation of 10,000 primary health facilities in 774 local government area across the country for effective service delivery to people towards decongesting the nation’s tertiary health institutions.

-Providing free antenatal care for pregnant women; free health care for babies and children up to school going age and the aged.

-Free treatment for those afflicted with infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and HIV.

-Providing incentives for Nigerian doctors and health practitioners working abroad to return home to strengthen the health care industry in Nigeria and provide quality care to those who need it.

-Quelling the inter and intra professional discontentment in the health sector.

– Reducing maternal and mortality rate in the country in the next three years 2015 -2018.

– Reducing mother to child HIV transmission by placing more people on anti-retroviral drugs.

-Rehabilitation of cancer machines across the country.

-Promise to start vaccine production in Nigeria

Achievements

-Launch of Tobacco Act and Campaign.

-Completion of radiotherapy machine in National hospital which can cater for 100 people per day.

-Revitalisation of 109 primary health care facilities across the country.

-Successful implementation of routine immunisation across the country.

-Relaunch of family planning programmes across the country.

Failures

-Outbreak of vaccine preventable diseases in the country. Diseases such as meningitis, cholera, measles, yellow fever etc can be prevented but due to lack of vaccine in the country, many people have died.

-Though steps toward commencing vaccine production in the country started with the signing of an MoU with May and Baker, much is yet to be done at the factory site and therefore the nation still depends on international donors for vaccine supplies.

-Activities in the health sector were marred by strike action from the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) and the Joint health sector union Unions and Assembly of Healthcare professionals, JOHESU.

-Most primary healthcare facilities across the country are still in dilapidated states and people still trek many miles to get basic health services.

-Universal Health Care has not been achievable as many Nigerians still pay out of their pockets to access health services.

-Cancer machines across the country are not yet fully functional and most Nigerians have been dying from cancer related diseases due to lack of radiotherapy machines.

-Nigeria still loses over N175 billion to high medical tourism to other countries.

-Intra and Inter professional battle worsen as JOHESU passes vote of no confidence on minster.

– Dilapidated state of secondary and tertiary health facilities/ lack of equipment.

-Mass migration of doctors from the country. According to Nigeria Medical Association, NMA President, 300 doctors left Nigeria in 2016.

Unconfirmed reports say 500 doctors sat for qualifying foreign medical examination preparing to move. Earlier in August, an official of National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD), Abimbola Olajide, said no fewer than 2,500 doctors would leave the country in 2017.

Score: Average

2. Science and Technology

Minister: Ogbonnaya Onu

Promises:

-Partnership with European Union, EU, on climate change, science and technology.

-N180 billion investment in National Science, Technology and Innovation Roadmap (NSTIR) 2030.

-Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) 2017 to 2020 to be driven by Science and Technology Innovation.

-Moving Nigeria from ‘assemblage to manufacturing.’

-Local production of pencils by 2018.

-400,000 jobs to be created through same pencil production.

-Closing all technology gaps to advance national development.

-Commercialisation of science and technology ideas.

-Monetary incentive of N1 billion, N500 million and N200 million for research purposes to the three top Agencies.

-The use of nuclear technology for power generation.

-To become “best minister Nigeria ever had.”

Achievements

-Signed Memorandum of Undertaking MoU with three international companies to export indigenous technologies and foods.

-Signed MoU with NASCO to kick off commercial production of High Nutrient Density biscuits.

-Staged a successful National Science and Technology Week.

-Initiated the “The Roadmap for Science, Technology and Innovation”, “The National Strategy for Promoting Competitiveness in Raw Materials and Products Development in Nigeria” and “The Policy Guidelines for the Planning and Execution of Programmes, Projects and Contracts with Science, Engineering and Technology Components”.

-Promotion of the use of Made-in-Nigeria goods by directing all 17 agencies under the ministry to patronise Innoson vehicles as well as other local manufacturing companies.

-Promotion of technological ideas in all agencies under the ministry.

Failures

-Low patronage and encouragement from government for inventors.

-Nigeria’s automotive industry yet to compete favourably with foreign companies though the minister blames it on the absence of research and development.

-Nothing meaningful has commenced on the pencil production.

-Nothing significant has started in the Nigeria-Russia agreement to build four nuclear power plants.

-Nigeria’s yam produce was rejected by United States of America over poor quality.

-He is far from being the best minister. Many have described the minister as one of the ‘sleeping’ ones.

Score: Average

3. Transportation & Aviation

Minister: Rotimi Amaechi

State Minister (Aviation): Hadi Sirika

Promises

-Lagos-Kano rail line as well as the Lagos-Port Harcourt standard gauge will start running before the end of 2017.

-Central rail project from Itakpe to Warri before the end of 2017.

-Narrow gauge line from Ilorin–Minna.

-To connect Abuja to other parts of the country through the central line at Warri, while the Jos Inland Port would be completed in June.

-Construction of Lagos-Ijebu-Ode-Ore-Benin-Asaba-Agbor-Onisha-Sapele-Yenagoa-Port Harcourt-Uyo and Calabar coastal rail line.

-To commence Eastern rail flank linking Aba to Port Harcourt, Makurdi, Enugu and Jos in June

-Linking of Ekiti rail through Osogbo to Ilorin, Minna and Kano.

-Dredging and construction of the Calabar Port as well as River Benue water ways.

-Projects at the Nigerian Institute of Transport Technology and the Nigeria Inland Waterways Authority.

-Establishment of Aviation University.

Achievements

-Commencement of work on the Itakpe-Warri rail line.

-Ongoing reforms in the Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).

-Commencement of construction work on the Lagos-Ibadan Rail line contract.

-Construction of a second runway at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja

-Near completion of the Lagos, Port Harcourt and Enugu airport terminals’ facelifts

-Flag-off of Transport short code *735# and Transport Social Media (TSM) mobile Application as a policy tool for the enhancement of passengers and motor parks safety.

-Contracting the security of the nation’s waterways to an Israeli security firm at $186 million.

Failures

-Most of the railway projects billed to be completed during the year under review are yet to be completed.

For instance, the Lagos-Kano line for which $7.5 billion loan was said to have been obtained from a Chinese bank in February is yet to be completed. While $1. 4 billion of the loan was for the construction of the rail gauge from Lagos to Ibadan, $6. 1 billion would be used on Ibadan–Ilorin–Minna-Kaduna– Kano line.

-Domestic flight operations declined by 33 per cent in the first quarter of 2017.

-Increasing cases of delayed flights. Domestic airlines operating in Nigeria delayed an average 89 flights daily between July and September 2017, according to official figures from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority.

The airlines also recorded 8,173 cases of delayed flights between July and September this year.

-Inadequate facilities at most of the airports which affects low passenger traffic. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the total number of passengers that passed through Nigerian airports in first quarter of 2017 was 2.5 milllion, representing 31.3 per cent when compared to the previous quarter.

-The average annual growth rate of the transport sector still remains a meagre 1.40 per cent of the Gross National Product.

-Rehabilitation of runways.

Score: Average

4. Niger Delta Affairs

Minister: Usani Usani

Promises

-To address problems created by lack of even development in the oil-rich region.

-Complete all on-going projects in the region.

-Complete the dualisation of the East-West road which commenced in 2006 but was taken over by the ministry in 2010.

Achievements

-The region has experienced relative peace, when compared with the past.

-An investigative panel set up by the ministry revealed that it uncovered massive fraud in the past operations of the ministry.

The Minister, Usani Usani, recent!y said there was very little or nothing to show for the N423 billion invested in projects in the region between 2009 and 2015.

Failures

-As acknowledged during the 2nd National Council on Niger Delta in September, the development pace in the region still remained very slow despite huge investments by various tiers of government, development partners, international oil companies and civil society organisations.

-The ministry’s skill acquisition projects and other projects have been abandoned in the different states of the region.

-Stakeholders in the region appear to be in the dark about the ministry’s operations, programmes, and achievements because of poor information dissemination.

-The East-West road, 338 Km dual carriageway traversing towns in Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Cross River and Delta is still far from completion. Some failed sections of the road in Rivers and Bayelsa states have reportedly led to avoidable accidents and loss of lives.

-The NDDC, which is supervised by the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, is enmeshed in an embarrassing controversy over its inability to pay tuition fees for Nigerian students studying abroad under the commission’s sponsorship.

Score: Below Average.

5. Education

Minister: Adamu Adamu

State Minister: Anthony Onwuka

Promises:

-Address the out-of-school children phenomenon.

-Strengthen basic and secondary school education, capacity building and professional development for teachers.

-Increase quality and access to higher education and pay more attention to basic education.

-Ensure 30 million Nigerians become literate within three years.

-Re-negotiate the 2009 Agreement with unions in tertiary sector.

-Academic stability at all levels.

-Attracting best brains to the teaching profession.

-Reducing the percentage counterpart fund paid by states to ease their accessing of funds.

-Providing e-learning, technical and vocational education and training, education data and planning and adult literacy including special needs education

Achievements

-Presented a roadmap for radical change in the education sector between 2016 and 2019.

-Separation of CRK/IRK in the basic education curriculum which eased the controversy.

-Implementation of open distance and flexible learning for 25 polytechnics.

-Approval of N1.9 billion intervention fund for each university.

-Technical university to commence academic activities in January.

-Conducted efficiency test for 60,480 pupils and 3,888 teachers.

-Modification of the United Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) for candidates seeking admission into the higher institutions of learning by introducing Central Admission Processing System.

-Approval of 15 university online learning centres.

-Revamping data collection system in the education sector.

-Introduction of Teachers’ professional examination.

-Conducting assessment of its basic schools which held last in 2011 under the previous administration.

-Approval of six new private universities and two state universities.

Failures

-Nigeria’s literacy level has not reduced. The nation currently has over 65 million illiterates, according to UNESCO.

-Funding of education: Only seven per cent was allocated to the education sector in 2017 against the stipulated 15 to 20 per cent proposed by the UNESCO.

-About 11.5 million school age Nigerian children are out of school, making the country the highest in the world.

-There is still proliferation of unregulated private schools.

–Decline in teaching profession. Over 40 per cent of Nigerian teachers are not qualified as they do not possess the prescribed minimum qualifications for teaching.

-Inadequate housing in public universities.

– About 207,818 teachers are unqualified in primary schools across the country.

– 50 per cent of Nigerians with post -secondary school qualification are underemployed or unemployed, according to findings by the National Bureau of Statistics.

-Only 450,000 of the normadic school-aged children are accessing any form of schooling out of the estimated 3.5 million.

-Unabated decline in quality of education.

-Labour disputes still thrive in the system. ASUU, ASUP & JAC (Comprising NASU, SSANU & NAAT) embarked on strikes at different times during the year crippling the sector.

Score: Average

6. Federal Capital Territory (FCT)

Minister: Mohammed Bello

Promises:

-To secure the city and the entire territory.

-Make it (city) environmentally friendly and responsive in terms of service delivery by all agencies of the FCTA.

Achievements:

-The minister identified a number of roads to be rehabilitated and took up those projects.

The ongoing projects include the dualisation of Jikwoyi-Karishi road, 2.5 km Bwari road project, mass housing project scheme, pedestrian bridge construction, Apo resettlement scheme, newly completed AYA overhead bridge, Airport Road flyover and Umar Musa Yar’Adua Express Way.

-Re-energised the health sector by revamping primary health care in the FCT. The minister said N360 million was provided for the construction of 220-bed spaces at the new Gwarimpa Hospital.

-Improvement in the sanitary situation of the city.

Failures:

– Despite these promises, security in the FCT worsened in 2017 as crime rate went up. There were rising cases of kidnapping, robbery, killings etc.

-A lot of public utilities like street lights broke down. Traffic lights at major points in the city are either not functioning or malfunctioning leaving streets dark and dangerous to FCT residents.

-Poor sanitary condition and environmental degradation in the capital city

-Persistent traffic congestion on Nyanya-Maraba,-Keffi Road despite the minister’s promise to address the situation.

-The administration is silent on progress (if any) made in some of the promised road projects which are aimed at easing movement for residents.

Score: Average

0 notes

christaindaily · 7 years ago

Quote

A Nigerian man with three lovely kids has shared his testimony after he was told by a doctor that his wife won’t be able to conceive a child. The thankful man identified Ifeanyi Okeke, revealed that rather than worry over his wife’s medical condition, he believed in God that something positive will eventually happen and it did. Read his story below; BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU PRAY FOR BECAUSE GOD ANSWERS PRAYERS – What was my Prayer Point: God please takeaway these wealth and give me children, even a child give me whether male or female. Dated March 2008. In March 2008 I had been married to my wife (my Blessing) for eight years without a child. Eight years is not eight days or eight weeks or eight months. I mean eight years, enough to graduate and bag a PhD and be called a Professor. I was blessed with a flourishing banking career. About the most popular banker in town already an Assistant General Manager (in-waiting). Nothing was more frustrating to me as going home to my wife with the news of a new promotion, a new car for her or a new house I intend building because of the response which will give me: what is all these worth without a child together. It was in this frustration that I went into my room on that fateful day but equally blessed day, went Unclad, knelt down, raised my hands up to heaven and made the radical prayer request. To put things in perspective, in October 1999 we were both serving (NYSC) (having been dating since 1997) when I proposed to her. March 2000 just one month out of NYSC we got married (paid her bride price). Yes we got married, TW and Church wedding were ceremonies that followed later. I got a job April 2000. On June 26, 2000 we got into a night bus together at Ido park, Lagos on a journey to Kano as I had completed three months training and was posted to Kano Main branch of the elsewhere Universal Trust Bank (UTB) as a Credit and Marketing Staff. We arrived Kano early morning June 27 2000 and moved into a one room she lived in as a CORPER which shared toilet, bathroom and kitchen with with another CORPER (Helen MO, tagged) It was about October in 2004 that a renowned Consultant Gynecologist and Head of Gynecology & Obstetrician Department of Teaching Hospital in Nigeria after a laparoscopy procedure on my wife, had given his verdict to myself and wife that she will not be able to carry a child. In his opinion, even if she is able to conceive either naturally or assisted, her WOMB could not carry a baby. He further advised that I discuss with my wife to marry another lady if I want to have kids. Story for another day back to my answered prayer. Yes God granted the two petitions I made in March 2008 but the second one came first “give me even a child”. In January 2009 our first child, Angel oluebubechukwu (Miracle work of God) was conceived and was successfully carried to term and delivered September 2009. About the time of her delivery God was already in motion to grant the first “takeaway all my wealth” as the stock market crashed with all I had worked for. At this point I was a Deputy General Manager in a top bank. One year after different circumstance had led me to leave my job. Well I got another the next month at the same level in another top bank. Four months after God decided it will not only be a child but children so my wife conceived again, this time twins, CHIMZARAMEKPERE (My God has answered my prayer) and CHIMDERA (Once my God has written or ordained) carried to term and delivered November 2011. Two months before their delivery God completely answered the first prayer as in a circumstance beyond my control but by mutual consent I left my top banking job. What would you say: YES GOD granted my prayers offered to him kneeling down Unclad with my hands raised to heaven. A month after their delivery I couldn’t afford to buy pampers. Three/Four months later I couldn’t afford to take them to church for dedication. One year after I couldn’t buy even a cake to mark their birthday. What did I do: I ran back to God Unclad, knelt down with hands raised up to heaven. I pleaded with God and said: Yes I told you to take away my wealth and give me children or even a child but I didn’t ask you to takeaway so much that I cannot afford to feed them. God said: my child I granted your request exactly as you asked. This was in 2012. Well I believe God has a reason for everything under the sun. We went through struggles through for two years. By late 2014 through the special intervention of the Mother of Perpetual Help (Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God) God looked back with a smile and started the restoration process. It’s been three years of God’s divine restoration project in our lives. Yesterday when I took these shots of my kids the entire memory came back so I decided to share with you. These kids I will not exchange for all the wealth in the whole world. Friends, please bless God with my family. But beware what you ask from God because he answers prayers. When you are down and out inside the gutter, run to the Mother of Perpetual Help (The Blessed Virgin Mary) to intercede for you. She NEVER fails to get result from her son who NEVER says no to her Mother

http://christaindaily.blogspot.com/2017/07/doctors-told-my-wife-she-cant-conceive.html

#SEO #Local SEO training

0 notes

juditmiltz · 7 years ago

Text

This was supposed to be Don Jr.’s time as a real estate macher. Then came the emails

Donald Trump Jr. (Background image credit: Getty Images)

From TRD New York: “If it’s what you say I love it”

That’s what Donald Trump, Jr. told a quirky British publicist who promised him Russian-stamped dirt on Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential campaign.

A series of reports by the New York Times this week, amplified by Don Jr.’s shifting responses to them, thrust the president’s oldest son and Trump Organization executive vice-president into the national spotlight. But in New York’s real estate industry, where Don Jr. spent years trying to emerge from under his father’s immense shadow, he is still not a well-known figure.

President Trump’s election victory and his decision to pass the family company’s management onto his sons finally seemed to offer Don Jr. a chance to become more than his father’s son. He announced plans for the company’s national expansion, and even entertained the idea of running for governor. Then, the email scandal broke. Now some observers fret he is in over his head.

“I do think he was bitten by the political bug, and I think this whole presidential election went to his head and I think it changed him,” said Louise Sunshine, the former Trump Organization executive and new development marketer who has known Don Jr. since he was a child. “It changes a lot of people.” As for how Don Jr. should be working to limit the fallout from the emails, Sunshine said he’s in desperate need of people from outside the family to guide him.

“You have to have very good advisors,” she said. “And who are his advisors? No one.”

A spokesperson for the Trump Organization did not return a request for comment. Trump, as part of a brief statement addressing the emails, said: “Don is — as many of you know Don — he’s a good boy.”

“None of us know his children.”

Many close to the Trump Organization, like its longtime real estate attorney Jay Neveloff, speak positively of Don Jr., calling him a smart and effective dealmaker, who, although more low-key than his gregarious father, is still sincere and engaging.

“He’s such a good guy and he knows how to make a deal,” Neveloff said. “My heart’s breaking for him in this situation and I think I could take the same facts and spin them differently and it would be a non-story… I’ve had more meetings with Russians claiming something than I should have had,” he quipped, citing numerous sit-downs with Russian attorneys and investors promoting deals that ultimately went nowhere.

Gil Dezer, himself the son of a real estate magnate and a partner of the Trumps on six developments in South Florida, called Don Jr. “a guy’s guy” who is “extremely intelligent and very quick, very quick.”

“The entire Trump family works 28 hours a day, they manage everything, it’s amazing how they do it,” Dezer said. “You go out with these people and you almost feel like you don’t work [compared to them].”

But exit Trumpland, and New York and Florida real estate executives have little to say about the man.

“I honestly never heard anything about his business dealings,” said Stephen Kliegerman, the president of Halstead Property Development Marketing.

In New York City, being the oldest son in a well-known real estate dynasty usually confers upon you princeling status. Jared Kushner, the 36-year-old son of developer Charlie Kushner, took over the family business when his father went to prison in 2005 and quickly gained considerable clout. Jerry Speyer’s son Rob now runs Tishman Speyer and became chair of the powerful Real Estate Board of New York in 2013. It was a borderline scandal when the late developer Seymour Durst skipped over his eldest son Robert to name Douglas the heir to the throne.

Some observers argue that the main reason Don Jr. doesn’t have Jared-esque standing is that his father won’t let him.

“When you have such an overbearing father, what do you expect?” said Michael Stoler, a Madison Realty Capital executive who hosts the long-running, industry-focused TV show The Stoler Report.

“There’s a clear hierarchy in the firm, and the father sits on top of it,” said Roy Stillman, a developer who partnered with Trump on a Fort Lauderdale hotel project in the mid-2000s that ended in a legal battle between the two sides.

But Trump’s long shadow can’t explain why Don Jr.’s siblings, Eric and Ivanka Trump, appear to have left a greater impression.

“Everybody knows Eric, not that many people know Donald Jr.,” said George Arzt, a Democratic consultant who has represented the likes of Gary Barnett and the Milstein family. “I always found Ivanka and Eric more approachable than their brother,” added Kliegerman.

Joseph Cayre, the founder of Midtown Equities who spent election night celebrating with Trump and other close associates at New York’s Hilton hotel, said he had never met Don Jr. When asked if any of his friends and colleagues in the business knew Don Jr., he replied: “None of us know his [Trump’s] children. We know him and his son-in-law.”

“I don’t know Donald Trump, Jr.,” said Jeff Greene, the real estate investor, former Palm Beach neighbor of Trump and frequent visitor to the president’s Mar-A-Lago resort. Greene, echoing the sentiments of several others who spoke to The Real Deal, said that Ivanka was always the more sociable of the clan. “I don’t see them” Greene said of the sons. “They’re kind of invisible. I never read about [Don Jr.] and I never hear about him doing anything…Donald Trump [Sr.], he makes an effort with the high profile people at Mar-a-Lago, like with me, maybe because I’m his former neighbor and a billionaire… The sons, if I were one of the sons, I would have been doing a lot of that.”

“In 30 years working in this business, I’ve never seen him at any major real estate events” said Roxanne Donovan, a real estate publicist who counts Savanna and HFZ Capital Group among her clients. RXR Realty’s Scott Rechler said likewise: “I never ran into him and don’t think he has been active in the New York real estate industry scene,” he said.

Others said they had only ever encountered Don Jr. at the annual holiday parties of a popular freelance real estate reporter who was close to many industry bigwigs. Attendees of those parties said Don Jr. developed a close friendship with the reporter, Lauren Price, who died of cancer. He is said to have never missed a get-together at Price’s one-bedroom apartment on the Upper West Side.

For years now, the Trump Organization hasn’t been a traditional Manhattan real estate developer. It mostly relies on licensing deals instead of equity ownership, with a focus outside of New York City. The company is, however, aggressively positioning for a national expansion, and has already almost fully transitioned to a hotel-focused model around the U.S. and abroad. In September, it announced the launch of a new boutique hotel brand, Scion, although licensing deals have been slow to get off the ground. Its first reported licensing partner, a developer in Dallas, decided to drop project plans in April.

New York is still on the company agenda, though, at least according to Eric Trump. In an interview with TRD last year, Eric said ��there’s no question we’ll do something in Manhattan again.”

Crisis management 101

On June 5, Don Jr. announced the Trump Organization’s latest hospitality brand, dubbed American Idea. “Eric and I got a great crash course in America over the last two years,” he said. “We saw so many places and so many towns and heard so many stories that were so touching. People that were so excited about the prospect of this country and Americana in general.”

But now, steeped in scandal for what critics are calling collusion with a hostile government, could Don Jr. remain the flag-bearer for American Idea? It’s a legitimate question for observers of the firm, who wonder whether the scandal could make it harder for him to do his job.

“This would be a very poor time for Don Jr. to be speaking out about something else” other than the email scandal, Stillman said, “because there is nothing else. They’ve been trying to change the narrative but it’s like gum under their shoe.”

Lanny Davis, an attorney and crisis-management specialist who represented President Bill Clinton during his late-1990s impeachment trial, said Don Jr. had so far broken every rule in the book in his attempts to mitigate the potentially damaging revelations of the Russia story.

“He hasn’t missed one opportunity to make a mistake,” Davis said. “He even screwed up when he did the right thing, by putting out the email chain, but he wasn’t honest about why he was doing it. And he allowed his father to be dishonest by saying he was being transparent.”

“I don’t think he is managing the crisis, he never has been,” said Eric Dezenhall, who worked in President Ronald Reagan’s White House and has captained crisis situations for companies like ExxonMobil. Still, he’s not sure if Don Jr.’s gaffe will hurt the business.

“If the Trump business were in software or if they were a big accounting firm this would be a whole other conversation, but they’re land peddlers, so I’m not sure if an investor in Malaysia really gives a damn about any of this stuff,” he added.

Others said balancing the unwanted public attention with work responsibilities was doable, but would require a great deal of outside help and focus.

“Being in the middle of an investigation has clearly got to be a distraction,” Neveloff said. “But you can still run a business.”

from The Real Deal Miami https://therealdeal.com/2017/07/14/this-was-supposed-to-be-don-jr-s-time-as-a-real-estate-macher-then-came-the-emails/#new_tab via IFTTT

#The Real Deal Miami

0 notes