They decried that the nation’s ecological funds, in past years, has not been properly accounted for. They, therefore, urge citizens to start asking questions on the funds.
The Country Director of Natural Justice, Mike Karikpo, stated this, in Port Harcourt, during training on Environmental Human Rights for journalists in the Niger Delta region, at the weekend.
He said: “We need to hold our government accountable. What are they doing with the ecological fund? Where are they putting it? These are questions we need to ask. We can work together to utilise that fund to prepare ourselves for what is coming.
“You can’t prevent or control the amount of rainfall, but you can prepare for it; you can put in place structures to deal with the impact of rain that will come.
The ecological fund will help states prepare for this particular process, but they are not using it for that purpose; that fund has been immersed in corruption and unaccountability. We need to rescue that fund as a people and be sure government is putting it to work for communities that are impacted with climate crises.”
Based on the flooding warnings by NIMET, the environmental expert said that government at all levels need to be proactive to nipping the challenge in the bud. He regretted that governments appear unconcerned till date.
“Climate change is an issue that has been with us, and, last year, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs said Nigeria lost over $6.4 billion from the devastation that happened to us, which over 600 persons died. You see the magnitude of damage and loss, yet nothing has been done to ameliorate it.
“This year, NIMET has said in the presentation we heard that we would have more rainfall and devastation from flooding, and as it is right now, nobody, not the council, the state government, the federal nor the state emergency management agency has started doing anything to the climate crisis and flooding that is going to happen. Are we waiting until these things happen for us to react?”
