By Merit Ibe
The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) has raised the alarm over what it described as Nigeria’s failure to protect investors and employers, warning that unchecked powers of labour unions and regulatory agencies are stifling enterprise, scaring off capital and crippling the country’s competitiveness.
In a policy brief released in Lagos on Sunday, CPPE Director General, Dr. Muda Yusuf, said Nigeria had built strong legal frameworks to safeguard workers’ rights but failed to create an equivalent protection system for those who invest and create jobs.
googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-1718806029429-0’); });
“Investors, entrepreneurs, and employers are the lifeblood of every modern economy. They take risks, mobilise capital, create jobs, generate tax revenues, and drive innovation. Yet, in Nigeria, their rights and investments remain inadequately protected,” Yusuf declared.
The CPPE boss lamented that employers remain vulnerable to harassment, arbitrary regulatory decisions, and industrial actions often described as “disproportionate and disruptive.”
“There is a growing and disturbing incidence of incredibly disproportionate industrial actions,” he said, stressing that the real sector, with its large workforce and high fixed costs, is especially exposed to strikes and shutdowns.
The policy paper also faulted regulatory arbitrariness and bureaucratic bottlenecks, saying they create an unpredictable business climate that undermines investor confidence.
“The limits of regulatory powers should be clearly defined. Such powers should not be absolute. Regulatory agencies should not be the accuser, jury, and the judge,” the brief noted.
According to CPPE, investor vulnerability has far-reaching economic consequences: “When investors lose confidence, capital flight intensifies, foreign direct investment declines, and domestic enterprises contract their operations. The resulting chain reaction includes job losses, declining tax revenues, and reduced economic growth.”
The group recommended a comprehensive Investor and Employer Protection Act to codify the rights of investors, employers, regulators, and unions, while prohibiting intimidation, coercion, and unlawful shutdowns.
It also proposed stronger dispute resolution mechanisms, compulsory arbitration in essential sectors like energy, health and transport, and sanctions for unlawful strikes.
“Labour rights should end where those of employers begin. “Investors should have as much right to protect their investments as labour unions have to protect their workers. There is a need for a fair and equitable balance,” he stressed.
He further called for an Independent Investment Ombudsman Office, a Business Rights Tribunal, and a Public Transparency Dashboard to monitor regulatory actions and industrial disputes in real time.
The CPPE insists that restoring investor confidence is not optional but an economic necessity. “Protecting investors and employers is not a privilege, it is a national economic imperative. Without them, there can be no sustained growth, no employment, and no national prosperity,” Yusuf argued.
While acknowledging that unions have a legitimate role in safeguarding workers, the think-tank warned that Nigeria risks sliding further into economic decline if investor rights are not protected.
“This is not about weakening labour unions, but about balancing rights and responsibilities, to foster sustainable economic growth, social stability, and national security,” Yusuf noted.
The post Investors unprotected as labour, regulators wield excessive power –CPPE appeared first on The Sun Nigeria.
