THE INTERVIEW : ALFRED PISANI hotel in Benghazi . We have bought the site , have the drawings done and have presented it to the planning authority and hope to start excavation within six months . We are also going ahead with a 2.15 million-sq-ft ( 200,000-sq-m ), 40-story mixed-use center in Tripoli .
One is truly seeing the beginning of a future . Our hotel survived . We had one bullet hole . We never stopped .
H : What are Corinthia ’ s remaining ties to the previous Libyian regime from an investment standpoint ?
AP : There was never any connection with the regime . If I come to New York City and try to build a hotel , we will never have a relationship if we had ties to the ( late Col . Moammar ) Ghadafi regime . There was never any kind of contact with the regime , and I thank God this wasn ’ t happening , otherwise we wouldn ’ t be able to work now . The very fact that we were welcomed with open arms is proof we are purely a business company interested in business activities .
H : There were reports that one of Ghadafi ’ s sons invested in the London hotel . Can you clarify ?
AP : Rubbish . There is not a sniff of honesty in that . Investors in London are Istithmar World ( Dubai ) and Corinthia through IHI . When disturbances in Libya started we were just getting ready to open in London . Maybe it was convenient for some of our competitors to refer to this as an investment by the regime and his children so they could throw some mud that would do us harm , and harm it did do .
We immediately presented our papers to the treasury in the U . K ., who on checking issued a certificate that we were beyond any sanctions . We were issued a similar certification in the U . S ., we approached Brussels for NATO and the U . N . in New York City , and within three months had all institutions issuing certificates stating we were totally clean , and we could do business with any banks . What people say is not necessarily what reality is . H : What keeps you up at night ? AP : Details . How to maintain the motivation of colleagues independent of all the problems they may face at home . I worry about that . But that is something you always worry about .
My philosophy is one that gives a lot of importance to the human aspect . I tell my colleagues to give importance to details . If just sharpening a pencil is important , do it well , as it is the most important thing in the world . This automatically ingrains into one ’ s personality subconscious ability to do things well without thinking about it . I am quite sure that if we can teach our young men and women to take every step with a sense that it is the most important step in their life , consolidate that and move on , we will build a society with stronger principals and greater determination .
www . hotelsmag . com June 2012 HOTELS 41