Fantasy Entertainmet CEO, Leslie Quaynor
CEO of Fantasy Entertainment and owner of the recently demolished Fantasy Dome, Leslie Quaynor, has recounted the challenges he faced with the Ghana Trade Fair Company leading up to the controversial demolition of the Fantasy Dome.
Quaynor's five-year lease, which began on January 1, 2018, ended in December 2023, but redevelopment plans disrupted his business operations before the lease concluded.
In a heartfelt narration on Hitz FM on March 19, Quaynor described the extensive and costly construction efforts to ensure the safety of the dome, situated on clay soil, which required a $2 million investment just for the foundation.
Despite these efforts, the Trade Fair Company's redevelopment activities and the attitude of it’s CEO, Dr Agnes Adu, created a hostile environment for his business, and he was given a six-month notice to vacate.
"Just when I started business in 2019, COVID came around the next year. So for the next two and a half years, I couldn't work. And then right after COVID, around 2021, 2022, they said, we're going to do redevelopment. Then they started digging holes around the structure which didn't even make it possible for me to do business because no one wants to go to a place to do events with sand and all this stuff.
“She came back and said, well, ‘we'll give you a six-month notice, we'll make space for you on the other side of the trade fair’, I said to her, ‘Does that make sense?’ And it's only a year left on my lease. Do you want me to go spend another 2, maybe $4 million now to do just a platform to move this thing for me to leave in a year? Because you've told me that you're not going to extend my lease, you're not going to renew for me. Does it make sense? Let me stay here for the remainder of the term and then let me find a place to go. She said no,” he narrated.
As the lease neared its end, Quaynor sought a new location, eventually negotiating with the University of Ghana for a relocation site.
He requested a 60-day extension from the Trade Fair Company to finalize the move, which was denied.
“At the end of the lease, I've been looking for land, all of Accra. For me to be successful, I need at least four to five acres of land. And nowhere in Accra can you find that much space. For eight months. I was looking. I finally got to the University of Ghana, and they're very bureaucratic, but they do the right thing. We were two weeks away from finalizing a deal to get about two to four acres on their land, and we're going to finalize it. But by the end of this month or within the next 30 days, I would have relocated the fantasy dome.
“So that was the plan. When I wrote her the letter in December before my lease ended, she wrote back immediately and said, no, not only are we not giving you the 60 days, but as of January 1, which was in a week, you're not going to have access to the place anymore,” he said.
In response, Quaynor obtained a court injunction in early January to prevent the demolition but alleged that the Trade Fair Company evaded being served and proceeded with the demolition, despite the legal notice being posted on their premises.
Quaynor criticized the company's actions as disingenuous and illegal, especially the use of National Security to carry out the demolition without a court order.
“For her to come on the radio and claim they did not know about an injunction that would be trying to serve you since January is completely disingenuous. And then for you to go and destroy someone's property without a court order, I mean, put the injunction aside without a court order and use national security operators to protect you, that is illegal in the country,” he said.
The next court date is set for April 18, when Quaynor intends to pursue justice for the loss of his property.
How it started
On March 16, 2024, news broke out that the popular event centre, the Fantasy Dome in Accra was demolished by the Ghana Trade Fair Company Limited, despite a court injunction obtained by the owner, Leslie Quaynor, to halt the demolition.
The company carried out the exercise with the assistance of National Security operatives, destroying the 20,000-seater capacity venue valued at $25 million.
However, Dr Agnes Adu, CEO of the Ghana Trade Fair Company Limited, refuted claims of receiving a legal injunction against the demolition of the Fantasy Dome.
She asserted that the company proceeded with the demolition to advance the redevelopment of the Trade Fair Centre, stating that all tenants, including Fantasy Dome, were notified to vacate.
Despite 15 months of notice, the Fantasy Dome did not comply, leading to its dismantling to continue redevelopment efforts.
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