In a reaction to President Bola Tinubu’s recent allocation of portfolios to newly-appointed ministers, environment watchdog, the Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), has expressed concern over the operational status of some ministries and the fact that a minister is yet to be appointed for one of them.
“There are many signs to show that we need to be worried about the President’s new lineup of ministries. Three of the announced ministries, the Ministry of Gas Resources, the Ministry of Petroleum and the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy raise special concerns at this time of our history.
“It is shocking to see that the Environment Ministry has no minister. Not appointing a minister for environment sends a signal to Nigerians about the concern of the President to a sector that is so fundamental to their survival,” the group submitted in a statement made available to EnviroNews on Sunday, August 20, 2023.
In the light of the degraded environment, the group stated that creating a Ministry of Gas Resources would only give license to the continuous gas emissions, regarded as a major cause of climate change and attendant problems faced by local communities.
It pointed out that, by placing a special focus and promoting the gas industry, the Ministry of Gas will inexorably discourage the development of cleaner and more sustainable energy alternatives.
“This will further create a long-term dependency on fossil fuels, at a time when all efforts should be made to ‘depetrolise’ our economy,” warned the group.
Executive Director of HOMEF, Nnimmo Bassey, stated: “We do not see a bright future for the Nigerian environment, people, and economy with the President as minister of the twin petroleum ministries, and with the creation of a Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy. The three ministries will pose unique problems for our aquatic ecosystems and will inevitably worsen the plight of communities whose interests are once more set to be sacrificed.”
Bassey added that title Marine and Blue Economy is tautological as the Blue Economy is practicable only in marine or aquatic ecosystems.
“The government may wish to rename the unit as Ministry of Marine Resources. The concept of Blue Economy, like the Green Economy, is aimed at massive exploitation and commodification of Nature with deleterious consequences. Developing the marine and blue economy sectors will lead to industrial fishing, pollution, habitat destruction, marine biotechnology, deep sea mining and other activities that are ecologically harmful. With a hugely unpoliced continental shelf this focus will pose special threats to our communities and others in the entire Gulf of Guinea.”
He pointed out that, by prioritising gas, other renewable energy sources will be neglected.
His words: “This lack of diversification will hinder a country’s ability to adapt to future energy demands. It portends continuous disruption of our ecosystems with attendant health and safety risks. At a time when health and environmental audits should be conducted in the oil field communities, the government is poised to ramp up the horrors. This is unacceptable.
“After taking so long to put together the cabinet, the announced set up raises many questions. While these may be addressed at the swearing in ceremony, it is hoped that the government will explain the erasure of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs to Nigerians, and what appointing a coordinating minister for the Ministry of Health means.
“It should also be noted that our inland water, coastal and marine environment has been subjected to violent exploitation that has led to the degradation that the environment suffers from; creating this ministry will lead to the intensification of such violet exploitation. Most adjacent communities and coastal communities where exploitation is taking place, there’s no portable water there as a result of pollution. This ministry will legalise such pollution. Artisanal fishing will be no more as well.”
HOMEF believes that it is important to carefully consider the potential repercussions when setting priorities for energy policies, as finding the right balance between economic interests, environmental health, and social well-being is crucial.
In a related development, President Bola Tinubu has announced a new Minister-Designate for Niger Delta Development and directed minor amendments to ministry nomenclature and portfolio allocation.
Even before the Ministers-Designate are sworn in, Abubakar Momoh from the Federal Ministry of Youth has been redeployed to the Federal Ministry of Niger Delta Development.
This was confirmed in a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale.
In the statement released on Sunday, Ngelale said the Federal Ministry of Youth would be re-assigned to a Minister-Designate soon.
The Ministers-Designate allocated to the Federal Ministries of Transportation, Interior and Marine and Blue Economy were also reshuffled.
While Adegboyega Oyetola is redeployed as the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Bunmi Tunji-Ojo has been redeployed as the Minister of Interior. Sa’idu Alkali, according to Ngelale, is now the Minister of Transportation.
Furthermore, both Ministers of State in the Oil & Gas sector are now domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources with the following designations: Senator Heineken Lokpobiri is the Minister of State (Oil) for Petroleum Resources, and Ekperipe Ekpo is the Minister of State (Gas) for Petroleum Resources.
Ngelale also said President Tinubu approved the renaming of the Federal Ministry of the Environment and Ecological Management as the Federal Ministry of the Environment, adding that the changes take immediate effect.
