The Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, CFL Group, Mr Lai Omotola, has said it is important for the government to support businesses in the country in order to ensure economic recovery.
Omotola said this during the company’s 12th end-of-year press briefing on the state of the nation in Lagos.
He said, “We can revive the economy by being pro-business. No single Nigerian company is a global brand with a presence in 170 countries of the world, except the church.
“If the church can do this, then Nigerian businesses can do same but it still remains a tall order. The government needs to be pro-business in order to generate more taxes and create social amenities.”
According to him, if the size of the Nigerian stock exchange is as big as N280tn. The country’s budget for a year is N180tn. This will drive down inflation and bring the exchange rate to less than N50 to a dollar.
Omotola noted that real estate, the company’s flagship business, had been on the increase in Lagos despite setbacks.
He said, “As you all know, construction remains the fastest way of getting out of recession.
The issue of ownership and disputes in land is on the increase in Lagos and also spreading to other states.”
While noting that this problem could be solved through the use of land information in office of the survey general. The land information was inadequate because it only tells if the government has an interest in the land or not.
He said, “Part of the challenges associated with the registration of title is that it takes a long time to process, and this is not good for business.
– Punch