Arusha — The management of Snow Crest Hotel, whose perimeter fence was controversially demolished by Tanzania Roads Agency (Tanroads) on Monday, was erecting another structure yesterday.

Tanroads demolished the fence just three days after President Kikwete opened the hotel on the grounds that it was built on a road reserve.

Workmen were yesterday busy laying bricks at the spot where the fence was pulled down. However, officials of the hotel located along the Arusha-Moshi highway declined to comment, and referred reporters to Mr Wilfred Tarimo, the executive director of the firm that owns the establishment.

Mr Tarimo, who had been in and out of the hotel since Monday, could not be reached on his mobile phones yesterday.

The Citizen visited the hotel and found workers putting up concrete barriers separating the establishment from the busy Arusha-Moshi highway.

A senior hotel official, who appeared to be supervising the work, was not categorical as to whether the management had obtained permission from Tanroads to erect the barriers.

"It looks as if they (Tanroads) thought that there was something wrong with the metal fence. We are now replacing it with these barriers, and will plant flowers between them," said the official, who did not want to be indentified because he is not the hotel's spokesman.

On Monday morning, a demolition squad from the Tanroads regional office descended on the newly opened hotel and pulled down its fence, gates and security guards' sentry box, claiming they were within the road reserve.

That was only three days after the $8 million (Sh10 billion) facility was officially inaugurated by President Jakaya Kikwete in a blaze of publicity.

Asked whether Tanroads would not pull down the concrete barriers being put up, another hotel official declined to explain why they were erecting the structures on the same spot where the fence was demolished.

"This time Tanroads will not do anything. We will stop them from touching this," he said above the din of masons working at the site and traffic along the highway.

Tanroads regional manager Deudedith Kakoko declined to comment on the development yesterday, and instead took a swipe at a section of the media, which he accused of putting him on a collision with the government after reporting that he had ordered that the hotel be demolished

"Why are you people behaving so unprofessionally and irresponsibly? No part of the hotel building has been pulled down as reported by some newspapers," he told The Citizen by telephone.

He stated that what had taken place was the removal of structures that had extended to the road reserve, adding that this was normal.

Mr Kakoko said he had acted within the confines of the law, "irrespective of what people may be saying".

He said road reserves along major roads extended to 22.5 metres on either side from the middle of the road, adding that plans were afoot to extend the reserves to 30 metres.

Mr Kakoko dismissed the suggestion that he should have waited until the commencement of the Arusha-Moshi highway expansion to pull down the structures he says were illegally built by Snow Crest Hotel.

"Implementation of a major road project does not start with the laying of tarmac as most of you think, but begins with the survey and design.

"Teams of surveyors and engineers have been at the site (Arusha-Moshi road) for some time now working on the planned road expansion," he said.

He maintained that the fence was built contrary to the law irrespective of whether or not the road was to be expanded.

While Tanroads maintained that it acted lawfully, the Arusha regional administration was bitter about the saga, which has apparently embarrassed President Kikwete.

A senior official with the regional secretariat wondered yesterday why the demolition took place soon after the inauguration of the tourist hotel.

"In my view this matter should have been amicably sorted out by the two parties before degenerating into a crisis which has embarrassed us all," he observed.

Hotel officials admitted that they had received several notices from Tanroads, but said they were planning to sue Tanroads over the demolition.

"This is a big embarrassment. Kakoko should have consulted us before doing this. We are thinking of taking the agency to court," said a hotel official.

The hotel's management also criticised the media for the way it reported Tanroads' move, which has sparked a passionate debate in Arusha and its environs.

"Many papers reported that our hotel has been demolished when this is not true. Our operations continue as usual despite the incident," he pointed out.

The otherwise impressive, two-winged and three-storeyed looked "naked" yesterday as there was no fence separating it with the busy and noisy highway.

"We are trying to place adverts informing prospective clients that we are still in business following negative reports that the hotel has been demolished,"a hotel official said.

Snow Crest Hotel, located five kilometres east of Arusha, started operations last September, and its first guests were delegates to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) conference held in Arusha.

It was recently a beehive of activities when it hosted a series of meetings that preceded the 10th anniversary celebrations of the East African Community (EAC).

The hotel, which Mr Tarimo says is wholly owned by indigenous Tanzanians, was constructed at the cost of $8 million, with most of the money being a loan from the PTA Investment Bank.

Mr Tarimo, an Arusha-based businessman, is the executive director, with Mr Kim David Mgaya and Ms Theodora Tarimo as directors.