8 ministers shun Reps panel on climate change

Eight ministers, yesterday, shunned an invitation of the House of Representatives Committee on Climate Change to parley on the subject matter.

Ministers who were invited, but failed to show up were: Ministers of Power, Environment, Transport, Science and Technology, Health, Petroleum Resources, Water Resources, Budget and National Planning.

In his remarks, Committee Chairman, Sam Onuigbo said no reasons were given for staying away and representatives were also not sent to the meeting.

Minister of Information and Culture, Mr. Lai Mohammed, however, showed up.

The Federal Government, yesterday, claimed that the negative impacts of climate change were partly responsible for the rise in Boko Haram activities, as well as herdsmen-farmers clashes in the country.  Mohammed, who briefed the committee on the preparedness of the Federal Government to mitigate biting effects of climate change called for inter-agency collaboration.

He said the disturbing desertification in the North, erosion and flooding in the South-South and South-East, as well as ocean rise in the South-West were clear pointers to what was ahead if the issue of climate change was not immediately tackled.

The minister said: “I have been pondering on the sagacity of this committee. There is insufficient information about climate change. People just know that there is a change in weather. Climate change is more fundamental than that. It affects our economy, security and other ways of life. The conflicts between herdsmen and farmers are as a result of climate change.

“In the past, there were grasses to feed on. But today, we do not have that in the North. The Lake Chad that shrunk is also responsible for the growth of Boko Haram. It is responsible for a number of things that have gone wrong. It is the number one cause of natural disasters in the country. No part of Nigeria is insulated from the effects of climate change. In the Southeastern part of the country, we have erosion problems. In the North, there is deserfication. In the South-western part, we have ocean surge.”