A lawmaker, Rep. Sam Onuigbo (APC-Abia), has described President Muhammadu Buhari as a jinx breaker and a promise keeper, saying his assent to the bill on climate change was a testimony to that.
Onuigbo made the submission in Abuja on Monday, November 22, 2021, against the backdrop of the President signing the bill into law on Nov. 18.
He said that it was not the first time the bill would be considered, noting that the bill was considered in the 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th Assembly.
He added that the signing of the bill into law qualified the President as a jinx breaker.
“I want to publicly thank the President for his leadership quality, this is something that is worthy of commendation. It has been a very long journey,” he said.
He said that Buhari made a promise to the people of Nigeria on May 29, 2015, when he vowed to tackle the issue of climate change.
“To see that he has finally assented to the bill apart from some of the things he has to do, was quite commendable,” he said.
The climate change bill was sponsored by Onuigbo, member representing Ikwuano/Umuahia North/Umuahia South Federal Constituency in Abia State.
The bill provides for the mainstreaming of climate change action and the establishment of a National Council on Climate Change.
It also paved way for environmental and economic accounting and a push for net zero emission deadline plan in the country.
He said that the bill scaled through this time because the House looked for what was contentious in the past and ironed them out.
He added that it ensured that those things were overcome because the Minister of Justice and the Attorney General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami, and other critical stakeholders were involved.
Onuigbo said that the climate change bill portends good for the country and would unleash massive developmental activities in the country, such as investment in areas that have to do with climate change.
He said it would help address the issue of renewable energy and the devastating effect of climate change, which is significantly responsible for the spate of security challenges in the country.
This, according to him, stretched from the Sahel region to some parts of the North, adding that some people have been penetrating this part of the world with problems because of climate change.
“This will also help us to work in a coordinated way, where activities of agencies will be coordinated and implementation plus monitoring and the Director General will report to the Council and the National Assembly,” he said.
He said that so many other countries were already taking actions to protect themselves against the effect of climate change in the highest level and Nigeria must not be excluded.
By Femi Ogunshola
