Sam Onuigbo is the member representing Umuahia/Ikwuano Federal Constituency of Abia State in the House of Representatives. Currently GLOBE’s Vice-President for Africa and President for Nigeria, he sponsored the Climate Change Bill, which was recently signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari. In this interview with The Guardian, he gave insight into the Act, which he said has put Nigeria on growth path.
Why was it that these assemblies were never able to get it right? I recall that an assembly once came up with the idea of a commission, but it was resisted. We also tried an agency, but it was also similarly described in a language that suggested we needed to change approach.In the 9th Assembly, we decided to move the thing to a higher level of policy-making, coordination, implementation and monitoring, by creating National Council on climate change.
Management of the Ecological Fund has been a major debate in Nigeria. Is there a provision for that in the Climate Change Act? Seeing this bill through was indeed a tortuous journey. How did you manage to stay on it despite obvious setbacks and challenges? Of course, do you also want to talk about the challenge I refer to as the Sahel challenge, how the whole place has turned into dust, because of desertification that has suspended drought there year-in-year-out, forcing people to lose their means of livelihood and as a result, pushing them into forced migration. Look at what has happened in Chad, you see that when these people are pushed out, they go to uncharted territory and what you have there is clashes, fight, and conflict.
I commend Mr. President for the kind of admirable leadership that he displayed in signing this bill; it’s a huge achievement for him, for his administration, for the nation and by extension, for the world. This makes him a promise keeper and a jinx breaker.
You were at the Climate Change Conference in Glasgow with President Buhari and other stakeholders from Nigeria. As a country, how did we fare during the conference, particularly as it concerns commitments? I also told the parliament that we need to have the developed countries to redeem their promises, for our transition to go smoothly. In this part of the world, our emission levels are below 4 per cent. We need support; we need help. We cannot transit without preparations, because we are likely to transit into hunger and crisis. Therefore, this transition has to be just; it should be inclusive. It must carry the vulnerable communities as well.