Embrace climate-friendly attitude, Lagos governor urges residents – Newstrends
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Embrace climate-friendly attitude, Lagos governor urges residents

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… launches five-year climate action plan

By Dada Jackson

The Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, says the impact of climate change is no longer a theoretical threat but a reality and urges Lagosians to embrace a climate-friendly attitude.

He discloses this in an address he delivered at the opening ceremony of the state’s 8th International Climate Change Summit with the theme ‘Adapting Health, Energy, Agriculture, Transportation and Waste Infrastructure to the long-term Impact of Climate Change in Lagos’.

According to him, the impact of climate change being witnessed in some parts of the world has necessitated the need to urgently address the issue.

He admonished Lagosians to join the fight against climate change by adopting a climate friendly attitude in order to mitigate the effect on the society.

The governor pointed out that year 2020 was the worst year of climate change, adding that some countries recorded very devastating casualties as a result of the effects of climate.

He used the occasion of the opening ceremony to launch the Climate Action Plan (CAP 2020-2025).

With the new document, the state government will be responding to prevailing issues threatening the realisation of zero-carbon ambition, which are energy use, waste management and transport. They account for 90 per cent of total greenhouse gas emission in Lagos.

The summit also focused on the relationship between climate change and delivery of critical infrastructure transportation, agriculture and healthcare sectors.

Given the state’s topography and proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, the governor said Lagos is vulnerable to adverse events resulting from natural causes.

This, he said, prompted his administration to update the action plan to facilitate proactive response and clear strategy in mitigating the effects on global warming on the environment and the state economy.

He said, “This summit is an opportunity for us to present new Lagos State Climate Action Plan to the world. Painstaking effort has gone into it, and we are proud that we have been able to come up with a document that has robust plan for the environment.

“We have successfully updated the climate change action document adopted by Lagos in 2015 to reflect the targets and goals of the Paris Climate Change Agreement. The final product is the ‘Lagos Climate Action Plan: Second Five-year Plan 2020- 2025.

“The updated Climate Action Plan reveals three main areas of threat to our zero-carbon ambition in Lagos, which are energy, waste and transport. They account for 90 per cent of our total greenhouse gas emission. We are now more adept at incorporating climate-friendly thinking into everything we do as a Government. Our goal is to entrench the action plan across the entire State, and get Lagosians imbibe the culture of climate-awareness in their homes, workplaces and lifestyles.”

Sanwo-Olu said most of the projects being undertaken by his administration were to address climate change and fast-track attainment of the zero-carbon goal in transportation, healthcare, energy, agriculture and waste management.

He said his government’s public transport reform sought to reduce number of personal vehicles on the roads, by providing alternative transportation model in form of low-emission buses and rail connections.

The state government, Sanwo-Olu pointed out, had adopted composting, recycling and waste-to-energy as part of the strategies to improve the quality of waste management in Lagos.

In the energy sector, Sanwo-Olu said the government would be rolling out opportunities in usage of off-grid solar systems to connect public schools, hospitals, government offices and public facilities.

He added that the state was looking into the exploring option of incentives to homes to move from fossil fuel generators to solar systems.

He said, “Lagos has been outstanding in the annual environmental reporting on the global disclosure system by the CDP, an international non-profit that measures the commitments of investors, companies, cities, states and regions to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. For three consecutive years, Lagos has emerged with a B score, which is well above the African and Global average score. This annual reporting has helped us greatly in understanding where we are and what still needs to be done.”

The governor thanked his predecessors for laying the foundation of developing Climate Action Plan, paving the way for consolidation by his administration.

Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr Tunji Bello, said the summit, since inception in 2009, had become a melting pot for researchers, investors, academicians and stakeholders in the environment and economic sectors to take unified decisions.

Bello praised Sanwo-Olu for bringing back the climate summit, five years after the event was held.

He said, “Around the world, governments and businesses are planning for climate instability. From flood defences to foreign aid, climate change is now part of policy and public discussions.

“The theme of this summit cannot be more apt than now because we have reached a point where Lagos needs to be intentional on projects and programmes that will be climate change compliant.”

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Why I can’t form coalition with Peter Obi – Sowore

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Peter Obi and Omoyele Sowore

Why I can’t form coalition with Peter Obi – Sowore

Omoyele Sowore, the African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, recently shared his reasons for not forming a coalition with Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s candidate in the same election.

In his appearance on the Honest Bunch podcast, Sowore asserted that, in his view, Obi is similar to other Nigerian politicians, describing him as “better at packaging.”

Sowore explained that his own journey in politics began long before Obi gained national recognition, emphasizing his dedication to advocating for systemic change in Nigeria.

During the podcast, co-hosted by Nedu, Husband Material, Deity Cole, and Ezinne, Sowore highlighted his belief in challenging the status quo, which he feels differs significantly from Obi’s approach.

Sowore said, “Before you discovered Peter Obi, I was already running for president. All these shouts about Peter Obi… He just knows how to package. Anyone can do it.

“If I form a coalition with Peter Obi, I will be going against what I have always stood for, which is that I will never support a Nigerian leader who has held any political office — whether at the federal, state, or local level — if I consider them non-performing.

“It’s the same reason I would never have joined hands with Atiku. And the Peter Obi you’re talking about was a vice-presidential candidate to Atiku when I was a presidential candidate in 2019.

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“So, what are we talking about? There is no lesser evil in my book. If you are evil, you are evil. If you are good, you are good. I have a general disdain for non-performance.”

He added that there is no such thing as “emotional attachment” in his dictionary.

“There was a friend of mine who kept saying, he doesn’t care if Peter Obi is Igbo, but that it is the turn of the Igbos. But it is beyond that; I have a natural disdain for poor performance,” he explained.

Sowore insisted that while many may not know it, he knew Obi before and during his time as governor, and he backed him.

“I had always known and supported him and stood against his removal when (Olusegun) Obasanjo wanted to use Andy Ubah to replace him—the twists and turns then.

“However, when Peter Obi finished his term in Anambra, the question I asked him was whether he could send his child to any university he had built in Anambra—he was mute and could not respond.

“I also asked him if he could enter any hospital he built in Anambra, which he governed for eight years, even if it was for the slightest headache—there was also no response.”

Sowore went on to challenge the four anchors or any other Nigerians, saying, “If they can pack their bags and head to Anambra for a vacation.”

PUNCH Online reports that President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress recorded 8,794,726 votes in the 2023 presidential election, followed by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party who secured 6,984,520 votes.

In third place, Labour Party’s Obi garnered 6,101,533 votes, and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria Peoples Party secured 1,496,687 votes.

Why I can’t form coalition with Peter Obi – Sowore

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Why we want Jonathan to contest 2027 presidency – Northern group

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Goodluck Ebele Jonathan

Why we want Jonathan to contest 2027 presidency – Northern group

The Arewa Consensus for Jonathan, a political group in the North, has urged former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to enter the 2027 presidential race.

Jonathan, who served as Nigeria’s president from 2010 to 2015, is widely regarded for his role in fostering democratic growth and his relatively peaceful exit from power after losing the 2015 election.
Despite his exit from politics, his name has remained a focal point in discussions about Nigeria’s future leadership.

The group’s leader, Munir Musa, who made the appeal during a press conference in Bauchi over the weekend, emphasised that Jonathan’s return to office was crucial to addressing Nigeria’s pressing economic and security challenges.

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He argued that Nigeria, grappling with severe economic downturns and rising security threats, needs a leader with Jonathan’s experience and competence to restore stability.

“The nation is at a crossroads, and we believe that Goodluck Jonathan is the right man to steer us out of the current malaise,” Musa told reporters.

He expressed confidence that Jonathan’s leadership could heal the country’s deepening wounds and usher in a new era of progress.

 

Why we want Jonathan to contest 2027 presidency – Northern group

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Afenifere, Council of Obas back Aiyedatiwa for Ondo gov

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Governor of Ondo State, Lucky Aiyedatiwa

Afenifere, Council of Obas back Aiyedatiwa for Ondo gov

Afenifere, the pan-Yoruba socio-political and cultural organization, has endorsed Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for the November 16 governorship election in Ondo State.

Sehinde Arogbofa, a prominent Afenifere leader, announced the support at the Olubaka of Oka land palace, Oba Yusuf Adebori Adeleye.

Arogbofa expressed confidence in Aiyedatiwa’s leadership and encouraged him to follow the values and legacy of Chief Adekunle Ajasin, Ondo State’s first governor. “Afenifere stands firmly behind your mandate… Strive to make Ondo State great again,” Arogbofa said.

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Oba Adeleye, speaking on behalf of traditional rulers in Akoko South West Local Government Area, also endorsed Aiyedatiwa, citing his masses-focused policies and the governor’s initiative to allocate five percent of local government funds to traditional institutions as a demonstration of his commitment to their welfare.

“The Council of Obas has decided that Governor Aiyedatiwa is our candidate,” Oba Adeleye stated, pledging their support for Aiyedatiwa’s election campaign.

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