President Jonathan Is Right: The Concept of Sustainable Development (In Nigeria) is An Illusion

By Churchill Okonkwo

In 2004 President Jonathan (then governor to D.S.P. Alamieyeseigha) said; “In a nation that the leaders do not believe in environmental protection, the concept of sustainable development is an illusion.” Eight years later on the 20th anniversary of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, the illusion of sustainable development under his leadership will be dissected. The theme for this years World Environment Day is; Green Economy Does it include you? For President Jonathan, the question is, does green economy include Nigeria? An assessment of his scorecard on environmental protection will begin to tell the story. 

Nigeria is blessed with abundant natural resources, but its model of economic development that is based on intensive exploitation and export, destroys the ecosystems while the government do nothing to halt the despoliation. According to the Brundtland Commission, sustainable development is “development that meets the need of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” 

Unfortunately, the model in Nigeria is neither focused on future generations nor is it green. The exploitation of Nigeria’s petroleum and gas reserves has immediate and proximal environmental consequences, such as oil spills, land and water pollution, and flaring that can cause global warming.

Under President Jonathan’s leadership, gas flaring which was supposed to have ceased in 1984 continues to pollute the air. According to Amnesty International, Niger Delta is one of the world’s ecosystem most severely impacted by petroleum pollution. Under President Jonathan’s watch, methane, a gas with adverse consequences for global warming is released in the course of flaring. Meanwhile, the Nigerian electricity generation could have used these to generate 6 GW of electric power annually according to World Bank. So, what does President Jonathan think about greening Nigerian electricity generation?

We have to remember that in our President, we have a hydrobiologist and according to the his Foundation he is “a member of Nigerian Society for Biological Conservation [NBSC], Nigerian Environmental Society (NES), International Association of Impact Assessment [AIA], and Ecological Society of Nigeria [EcSN]. So, with his scientific knowledge and ‘vast knowledge and experience in environmental impact assessment and conservation’ why does he not care about the assault on biodiversity and ecosystems? 

Talking about President Jonathan’s paper to the Nigerian Environmental Society in 2004 on the illusion of sustainable development, one begins to wonder whether he actually wrote that paper. If he did, was that statement hypocritical? If the paper was written for him, did he give it a thought before publication? If he did not give it a thought as a scholar, does that amount to incompetence? A school master that cannot read nor write?

The biggest challenge to environmental degradation in Nigeria is walking the talk. One of the cornerstones of environmental conservation and sustainable development in a nation is enforceable environmental law and proactive agency for the protection and management of the environment. A closer look at sections of National Environmental Standards and Regulations Environment Agency Act (NESREA Act) exposes flaws and clauses that literally obstruct environmental protection, conservation and sustainable development. As a trained Hydrologist, one that proud himself of his credentials as a conservationist, President Jonathan should have taken time to review this act and inject life into it. 

The present NESREA Act that excludes the Nigerian oil and gas sector (the greatest environmental threat to Nigeria) from regulation is an aberration. Section 8 (g) of the NESREA Act (like many others) mandating the agency to conduct investigation of pollution and degradation of natural resources, except investigations on the oil spillage … is unimaginable. If NESREA Act cannot enforce compliance and environmental regulation in the oil and gas sector, president Jonathan is right that the concept of sustainable development is illusion in Nigeria. 

Finally, the Niger Delta militants through their armed struggle were for long the only remaining voice for environmental protection and sustainable development since the demise of Ken Saro-Wiwa. President Jonathan however facilitated the Niger Delta militant’s compromise (through ‘amnesty’) on the fundamentals of environmental justice, conservation and sustainable development. In return, the militants got mere monetary handouts and ‘job training’ that presented another avenue for sycophants and government cronies to embezzle. By this single act, President Jonathan clearly demonstrated his strong disposition on the illusion of sustainable development. 

Fifty years from now, the environmental degradation in Niger Delta Nigeria caused by the present reckless and unregulated oil exploitation will be so massive that the future generation in the Niger Delta region will be left puzzled. By then, the rest of the developed and developing countries would have turned their back on the “cursed oil”. The onshore oil wells would have been fully exploited and the oil companies moved to the continental shelf far away from the creeks to be worried about kidnapping of oil workers or sizing oil wells. The future generation will then be asking: What happened to the allocation of scarce resources to different generation over time? Why didn’t our own Jonathan do something about environmental protection and sustainable development in Niger Delta? 

What President Jonathan needs to do now is simple: review the NESREA Act with the view to removing all the sections and clauses that exclude regulation and enforcement in oil and gas sector. After that, Mr. President has to display leadership and commitment by constituting NESREA board with teeth and one that can bite too. The concept of sustainable development is clearly a political issue and more radical action is needed from Mr. President. Failure to act on his part will rubbish all his credentials as a hydro biologist as well as make a mockery of his membership of those ecological and environmental groups. 

Churchill.okonkwo@gmail.com

www.voicefornigerianenvironment.com