THE Director-General of Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), Mr Segun Oshinowo, has decried the absence of good governance as a bane to economic development in Nigeria.
Speaking with journalists in Lagos during a farewell briefing with the media on Monday, Oshinowo stated that absence of good governance in Nigeria is one of those things he regretted the most as a DG of NECA, stressing that “It is one of those things I regretted the most in my 19 years as DG of NECA.
“When you look at other countries, you will see a good nexus between the living standard of the citizen and the government. It’s very important to know the purpose of being in government which is to improve the living standard of the people. Any measure of performance or relevance of government is derived from how well the citizens are doing, no other measures.
“This issue is not about excuses on why government policies have not worked. It’s not the business of the citizens. The citizens’ expectation is that we expect our welfare to be improved upon, how you go about it is not our business. All we expect is that on a regular basis, we are seeing improvement.
“But in our own environment (Nigeria), that nexus is simply not there. Excuses are often given as why policies are not working. I think we need to change from that narrative. Any government that has not been able to provide evidence that it has lifted his people from poverty has no business in government.”
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He explained that as a business membership organisation, it is part of NECA’s mandate to see that people’s welfare is improved.
“If the welfare of the people improves, the health of businesses can also improve. The issue is not about having a large population of impoverished people that you’re parading as a strength. The real strength of any economy is a population of people with healthy income in their pocket to support the economy,” he said.
However, he thanked the media for the support he enjoyed for over 19 years of active service and urged it to extend such support to his successor, Mr Timothy Olawale who will assume office in January 2019.
Timothy thanked his predecessor for his contribution to national economic development and urged him to keep his door open because “Mr Oshinowo’s expertise cannot be wished away when it comes to labour relations.”
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