By Peter OBIORA InvestAdvocate

Lagos (INVESTADVOCATE) – Olufemi Awoyemi, Capital Market Analyst and Founder/ Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Proshare Nigeria Limited Thursday advised Nigerian Legislators to enact good laws that will improve the Nigerian Capital Market (NCM) and bring about 30 percent (30%) Stock of privatised Companies to list on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

Awoyemi, said this while discussing a Paper presented by Oscar Onyema; CEO of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) at a Public Policy Forum organised by Business Hallmark Newspaper titled “Restoring Market Confidence in an era of Economic Uncertainties: Challenges and Prospects”

“The only people holding our Market down is the Legislators” he said.

According to him, the core responsibility of the Legislators which is something nobody has advocated is to make laws that will bring up to 30% stock of privatised Companies to the Capital Market.

“The core responsibility and that is something nobody has advanced really; and we keep on saying Government; no it is not government, is for our legislators to make laws and the laws must say for example that the privatisation process is not complete; until at least 25 to 30% of the stock of privatised Companies end up in the Capital Market” he said.

Awoyemi affirmed that the planned House of Representative probe on the Nigerian Capital Market is the Constitutional Right of the Legislators; but there primary responsibility is to make laws that will allow the Nigerians access the Capital Market; which is the most fundamental reason there is a Capital Market Committee to provide oversight functions that is needed to blossom the Market.

“The planned house probe, I have looked at the probe that the House is trying to do now and what I have said is that the House has the right to do any probe; because they are also fulfilling their constitutional rights which is something we can’t stop them and because when all other processes fail, the house will be their; but there is a primary responsibility for the Legislators and that is for them to make laws to allow the citizens of this country to access this Market” Awoyemi said.

He further affirmed that the Market Segmentation just launched by the Nigeria’s Exchange has disconnect between the economy and the Capital Market; suggesting that wealth is being generated in the Nigerian Economy; but has no way of going around.

The CEO of Proshare said that our Legislators should rewrite the laws that will make it possible for Companies to come into Nigeria and do business and would not be able to leave with all the money they have made; just the way it is obtainable in the developed economies.

“For instance, Global Oil and Gas Giant, BP and other multinational Firms are all listed on their Countries Stock Exchanges; why can’t they do so in ours; but because we don’t want to make it a compulsion but rewrite it as part of our law; so you don’t come into Nigeria with a briefcase and leave with a suitcase. If you come into Nigeria with a briefcase, you will likely leave with a wallet; because most of the money will still be here, you cannot come in and manipulate the system and leave; so it is high time we take a stand and say that such a practice is not sustainable; it cannot go on” Awoyemi said.

He further advised the Nigerian House of Representative and suggested that five (5) areas of national interest such as Energy, Telecomms, Power, Agriculture and Mining should be looked into and regulation passed for major operators in these ‘key sectors of the economy to list on the Nigerian Bourse.