Laide Raheem, Abeokuta
Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State has said Nigeria as a nation must ensure strong mechanisms are put in place for businesses, particularly, micro, small and medium enterprises, to survive in the country.
This, according to him, would accelerate Nigeria’s industrialisation drive.
Governor Amosun stated this, just as the Akarigbo and Paramount Ruler of Remoland, Oba Babatunde Ajayi, called for speedy legislation to regulate businesses against what he termed “needless insolvency”.
The governor and Akarigbo spoke at the 2018 international conference of Business Recovery and Insolvency Practitioners Association of Nigeria (BRIPAN), held in Lagos.
The conference with the theme, “Driving Business Rescue in the Shadow of the Law,” featured five plenary sessions on the concept of business rescue, mechanisms, challenges and legislative reforms required in the country.
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Represented by his deputy, Mrs. Yetunde Onanuga, Amosun, in his goodwill message, stressed that the survival of businesses is tantamount to the development of any economy, noting “businesses will ultimately boost employment generation and government revenue for the country”.
The governor, who noted all hands must be on deck to diversify the nation’s economy from the over-reliance on crude oil as its major source of income, submitted that insolvency in businesses will impact negatively on socio-economic development and lead to economic downturn.
While commending the vision behind the incorporation of BRIPAN, the governor said, “The trend all over the world is to ensure the survival of micro, small and medium enterprises alongside big businesses as a catalyst to industrialisation and ultimately a boost to employment generation and government revenue.
“Nigeria therefore cannot be an exception but must also ensure that her existing small and large businesses must not only survive but also flourish.”
Earlier, the Akarigbo, who is also the BRIPAN President/Chairman of Council, said there was need for restructuring within the context of ongoing development of insolvency law in the country.
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According to him, the era of businesses dying unnecessarily in Nigeria was over.
Oba Ajayi noted that central to the ongoing discussions was the role of insolvency practitioners, lawyers, taxation experts and chartered accountants in driving effective business rescue within the ambits of the law.
The monarch, however, expressed optimism that the conference would avail Nigerians various business rescue mechanisms available to financially distressed companies as well as the legal and regulatory framework essential for a vibrant and modern business rescue regime.
He also urged the National Assembly to accelerate the process of passing a bill sponsored by BRIPAN to ensure proper laws for regulating businesses in the country.
Also, Justice Abimbola Obaseki-Adejumo of the Court of Appeal, President, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Paul Usoro (SAN), and President, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), Alhaji Razak Jaiyeola, in their separate separate goodwill messages, called for concerted efforts by stakeholders to ensure virile economy for the nation.