Former Social Democratic Party (SDP) presidential candidate, Prince Adewole Adebayo, has said economic crimes must be punishable to achieve reform for Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) in the country.
Adebayo, in his keynote speech at the J9C 13th anniversary lecture themed: “Business and Policy Strategy: Examining the Role of Reforms in Enhancing the EoDB in Nigeria”, stressed that economic crimes do not allow businesses to reach their full potential.
He said the ease of doing business is designed to allow the government and policymakers’ attempt to make businesses succeed, stressing however that civil servants should never be in business or have interest in business.
He said: “When we are talking of economic reform, what we were having as a consensus is that it must affect the policies that affect the economic growth of a country.”
“It must bring efficiencies, and it must lead to stability. And when you do all of that, you will know when something is just a government program, because many programs have been passed off as reforms.”
He added that a government should be able to account for the revenue it is collecting.
“And to do fiscal reform, you must be able to handle the revenue that the government is collecting.”
He noted that for decades, no Nigeria government has been able to tell how it collects revenue, especially in the oil sector.
He said there is a fundamental need for reform in the way Nigeria’s measuring systems, adding “Whether we collect our revenue or not from crude oil is not being done.”
He continued, “And I don’t think, despite many of the reforms being discussed about that, that has been done at all.
“The implication is that if you cannot account for the revenue which you are collecting, then where do you start to build a government?”
Earlier in his opening address, Chairman of Coleman Wires and Cables, Dr. Solomon Onafowkan, said the theme was a testament to creating value-addition to professionalism, excellence in entrepreneurship which are the virtues expected from various callings in promoting rapid economic development in Nigeria.
He said investment is not sentimental as the first primary consideration for investment decisions globally is to go to where return is guaranteed but not taken for granted.
