Read what Elumelu has challenged National Assembly to do

Elumelu challenges lawmakers to pass modern buisness laws

– Tony Elumelu was present at the National Assembly Business Environment Roundtable (NASSBER)

– He said the lawmakers must be held accountable for not amending obsolete laws

– Elumelu said the lawmakers must pass the pending bills on the floor of the Senate

Tony Elumelu

A buisness mogul and vice chairman of the Competitive Counsel of Nigeria, Tony Elumelu on Monday, March 21, said that the National Assembly should be held accountable for not reviewing obsolete laws.

In an interview with newsmen at the National Assembly, he said the lawmakers must pass the pending bills on the floor of the Senate.

“Instead of addressing the symptoms, let address the fundamentals. Let us hold our National Assembly members accountable, let us knock on their door as the Senate president said. They must sit down and pass bill, we need them to pass one bill per week.

“Nigeria is a country as we have seen in difficult situation, so difficult times call for difficult reaction. We cannot afford to meet one hour a day and adjourn, we should sit down and pass bills. During the financial crises, America sat on Saturday, Sunday, we should do same.

“You can imagine what this country will become if we were to have these proper laws in place, we will not be thinking of oil again,” he said.

Elumelu added that if entrepreneurs, our small business scale and even micro enterprises excel in their work, there will be an increase of productivity which will address some of the issues in that sector.

“Why naira where it is, we need to create a competitive business environment that will enable our entrepreneurs, our small business scale and even micro enterprises to do well and once they do well we will increase our productivity and it will address some of these issues,” he said.

Elumelu added that people should stop talking about the budget in a bid to diversify the economy but instead, to create the enabling environment that would unleash the entrepreneurship in citizens.

“A man who is interested in fishing for instance, if he or she has access to finance, conducive environment to register the business immediately, tax duplication is avoided, he will be able to employ people.

“This a country of over 170 million people, if many people do that, our national productivity will grow up, we will not even be talking of oil,” said Elumelu.

He said that if Nigerians were encouraged to establish micro businesses, there would be improvement in national productivity and less dependence on oil.

The inaugural National Assembly Business Environment Round-table (NASSBER) which held on Monday, March 21 in Abuja had key stakeholders drawn from the executive, legislature and the private sector.

The round-table was to seek workable solutions to the nation’s economic problems and also to deliberate on the recommendations of the Business Environment Legislation Review Report which was submitted by a team of experts on February 29.

The findings and recommendations of the Business Environment Legislative Review Report, provides a framework for the assessment and improvement of legislation and policy affecting businesses in Nigeria and will direct the deliberations at the first NASSBER event.

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