Politicians stifling private sector – Economist

Government and persons in positions of power must desist from undue interference in the private sector to allow the businesses of entrepreneurially-driven individuals to thrive, economist Dr Kofi Orleans-Lindsay has admonished.

The former Oxford University lecturer was of the view that it is the private sector that can drive the economy and the role of politicians is to provide the necessary policies, instead of competing with private businesses.

“We need to get the government to get off our back because most of the time politicians tend to be in competition with the private sector and they tend to stifle those interested in doing things,” he stated.

Dr Lindsay, who was a guest on Class FM’s World Affairs on Friday, March 24, told host Dr Etse Sikanku that it was time for government to act on the unhealthy practice to spur growth in the private sector.

He emphasised: “They need to set the framework and must let these things go so somebody can think about how to add value to raw produce.”

To buttress his point, he said: “In Taiwan, for instance, when they started doing these things the government only invested in semiconductors; the rest of it was left to the private sector.”

For him, agriculture is where the nation’s economic revolution should start and then from there other industrial developmental avenues will evolve.