Celebrity stand-up comedian, Olamilekan Abegunde aka Dr. Smile, has advised the Federal Government on investing in the entertainment industry.
He said the government has lost billions that could have helped the country’s economy.
Dr. Smile lamented that those in government have ‘killed’ the nation’s entertainment industry instead of tapping into it as an alternative source of revenue generation.
The comedian regretted that the government at all levels has not been supporting the entertainment industry, and this has forced many players to host their shows and events somewhere else.
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Abegunde spoke on Wednesday at a press conference heralding his comedy show, tagged ‘Why Not Smile’ in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
While saying his forthcoming show would feature comedians like Alibaba, Basket Mouth, Julius Agwu, Seyi Law and others, Abegunde called on Governors to create an enabling environment for entertainers and start sponsoring them.
“Apart from Lagos state, what we have seen in the recent time is that government has not been encouraging players in the industry to host events and this has stifled the growth of the industry.
“Government needs to come in and support this industry so that it can grow. The entertainment industry can generate billions for the economy. Government has continued to lose money that could have come from this industry,” he said.