World Environment Day: MOSOP Urges Action On UNEP Report

Rivers State and the rest of  Nigeria will join  other countries across the world to mark this year’s  World Environment Day  (WED) today.
The United Nations Organisations (UNO) had designated the fifth of June every year as World Environment Day.
According to the Organisation, since the first celebration in 1974, the World Environment Day has helped      UNEP to raise awareness and generate political momentum around growing concerns such as, the depletion of the ozone layer, toxic chemicals, desertification and global warming.
According to the organisation, millions of people are now part of the campaign changing the consumption habits as well as in safeguarding the environment.
It would be recalled that last year’s celebration  was used by the global  body  to draw   the world’s  attention  to the  increase  in illegal wildlife  trade and the slogun  for that celebration was “Go  Wild for Life”.
This year, the theme is, “Connect people to Nature”, The Rivers State Commissioner  for Environment , Professor (Mrs) Roseline Konya, told The Tide in a telephone interview that the state government would certainly celebrate the World Environment  Day.
The commissioner also said that programmes  outlined for the celebration  will be made public soon.
Meanwhile,  the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni  People (MOSOP) has called on the Nigerian  government to use the occasion of this year’s World Environment Day to  expedite action on the  implementation of the  United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report on the cleanup of Ogoniland. Public Relations Officer of MOSOP, Mr. Bariara  Kpalap  told The Tide, that the entire  Ogoniland  is completely  devastated by oil pollution.
Mr. Kpalap  said  that, the sooner  the  federal government implements the UNEP reports, the better will be for Ogoni land and the rest of  the Niger Delta.
“They should  use this celebration to expedite action on the implementation of UNEP report because  our environment is  a already devastated.
“Without a clean environment, there can be no development”, he said.
The MOSOP spokesman also said that the Ogoni cleanup will serve as a starting point for the clean of polluted sites across the Niger Delta.