The Chairman, Climate Parliamentary, Rep Samuel Onuigbo, says the lawmakers will increase concerted efforts to combat and stem the effects of climate change in the country.
Onuigbo said this at the inaugural meeting of Climate Parliament Nigeria on Wednesday, December 16, 2020 in Abuja.
He said that legislators would be encouraged to vote for laws and policies that would be environmentally friendly.
He said that climate change was the newest environmental challenge in Nigeria and other parts of the world.
He urged the lawmakers to help strengthen global efforts to combat climate change.
He said the idea of a Climate Parliamentary group was to build support for legislators from Africa, the Americas, Asia and Europe as its fight to stem the devastating effect of climate change globally.
According to him, it has been identified that the fight against climate change needs to be backed by political will to take ambitious actions and this has become so urgent.
“Everywhere we turn, we are confronted by the harsh effects of climate change and the reality that if we do not take action now, we may not have a habitable earth in the next 50 years,” he said.
He noted that the impact of climate change was further seen in the loss of landmass and farmlands due to coastal erosion and flooding and other challenges including the drying of the Lake Chad.
He urged his colleagues to vote for laws and policies that would be environmentally friendly to support the country’s drive for climate change mitigation and adaptation.
The Spokesperson for the House, Rep Benjamin Kalu, harped on the need for necessary legislative instruments to tackle the challenges posed by climate change globally.
He urged the lawmakers to be committed to the project, adding that the issue of climate change should not be taken lightly.
Zonal Coordinators for Climate Change were appointed in all the six geo-political zones to help chart a roadmap for tackling climate change in Nigeria.
The parliamentary group zonal coordinators are Rep Omowumi Ogunlola, South-West; Rep Aisha Dukku, North-East; Rep Benjamin Kalu, South-East; Rep Dagomie Abiante, South-South; and Rep Shehu Kankale, North-West.
By Femi Ogunshola
