Climate change: presidential candidates proffer solutions to environmental challenge

By Mashe Umaru Gwamna

Four Nigerian presidential candidates have proffered solution to lingering environmental issues affecting the country.

The four candidates spoke at the presidential town hall meeting on environment and climate change, organised by Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), We the People, Health of the Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) and the University of Abuja held yesterday in Abuja.

Speaking at the meeting, the presidential candidates of Social Democratic Party (SDP), Prince Adebayo Adewole, said, one of the major cause of environmental problem is poverty, which leads people to get involved in environmental degradation.

He said “Our responsibility is to form a government that privatized the welfare of Nigerians, by educating them on natural and social environment.

It is very important for citizens to have an understanding on what climate change and environmental issues are beyond sanitation “.

“Their knowledge about environment and environmental justice is very key”, prince Adewole stated.

According to him “Our lands environment is good, it will help the world, in afforestation which will in turn provide more oxygen to the world .

Similarly,Presidential candidates of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Rabiu Kwankwaso said promotion of clean energy system is one of his top priorities to tackle climate change impact.

Kwankwaso represented by National Chairman, Prof. Rufuai Alkali, said “Every part of Nigeria is blessed with abundance of solar radiation which makes our potential among the highest in the world”. He emphasized that , solar energy compliments energy efficiency by providing a renewable energy source to power building system and reducing grid dependency .

Similarly, The Presidential Candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Dumebi Kachikwu,said, we must ensure that what we do with the environment matters.

“ What are doing with our environment have affect it nature and has brought devastating impact on it “.

Kachikwu explained that with such impact,” our government will make more impactful reforms by using our indigenous professional in various university to research on how we can handle our environmental issues and change issues .

“We must aline with science to protect our people , there is a need not just to depend on foreign scientists but also allow our local scientists to bring in their inputs .

He added that, companies that flames gas in various part of the country will face huge penalty.

“We needs to protects our lives and keep our environment safe our for habitation”, he said.

The presidential candidates of African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, stated that one of the major problem of climate change has to to with the Lakechade basic,he said to proffered solutions,the boarders must be fortified very well.

“We will encouraged individuals to do private ranchers for individuals and group that are raring cattles to patronize them , pay money and to feed or neither keeps cattles there within the environment in order to curtail farmers and Herdsmen clashes”, Sowore.

He said, his government will tackles enviromental issues by studying and understanding all the geographical environment of all the states in the country.

Meanwhile,The Director, Health Mother Earth Foundation( HOMEF), Nnimmo Bassey, said the reality is that , the focus of political leaders on the environment has been largely tokenish.

“The indicator is that they care at all about the environment is often only when the move to destroy underserved and largely autonomous communities termed slums”.

He said Enviroment sustainability has lost much of its meaning.

“Since it is hung mostly on economic plank which sees the environment as a thing to be exploited and transformed for the extraction of tents often termed foreign exchange earring”.

“ This drive for foreign exchange has allowed rapacious exploration that has scarred our environment and our peoples, leading to a catastrophic and shameful fall in life expectancy “,Bassey said .