The recent killing of Miss Cynthia Osokogu Udoka, the only daughter of a retired General, in Cosmilla Hotel, Lakeview Estate, Amuwo Odofin, Festac Town, Lagos, has brought to the fore the issue of security in our hotels.

Though the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Umar Abubakar Manko told journalists that the detectives arrested the suspects using the close circuit television at the hotel where the crime was committed to identify them.

Before now, the regulatory body in charge of tourism in the country, Nigeria Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) had mounted a campaign calling for tighter security in Nigerian hotels in order to check the increasing wave of criminal activities in the industry.

The Director General of the corporation has always maintained that it would not relent in its effort at ensuring that Nigeria is a safe destination for Nigerian and foreign tourists.

Cosmilla – Hotel where Cynthia Osokogu was strangled to death.

It would probably have been more difficult for the detectives to arrest the suspects without the CCTV mounted by the hotel’s management.

It has become imperative for hotel owners to know that people come in out and of hotels constantly as guests, check in and out, and so should make  conscious efforts to control visitors , even  at hotel lobbies  considered as a public spaces.

With recent events and threats of terrorism in the country, hotels should review and find ways to protect not only their guests but also themselves.

Hoteliers should start thinking of installing additional surveillance cameras which some people may view as infringing on their privacy, despite these feelings, video cameras on guest room floors, in elevators, stairwells and lobby areas do help in protecting guests. According to some experts, “Cameras can enable security staff to keep an eye out for suspicious behavior and therefore, prevent crime, such as theft and assault.”

It is only in Nigeria that anybody can check into a hotel without any identification required.  In countries like United Arab Emirates, Britain and other European Countries, even in some African countries, it is normal practice for hotels to take photocopies of  international passports of guests.

It was reported that the suspected killers of Cynthia before they were caught moved from one hotel to the other, but this would not have been possible if  the hotels required for identification to back up what ever information they provided in their registration forms.

So, it will not be out of place to require security employees or receptionists at Nigerian hotels to request government-issued identification cards for anyone entering the hotels, and have the staff conduct rounds of the hotel to ensure no one is lingering on the wrong floor or in a restricted area.