In my last post in the SM4CC series, I wrote about climate
change and the way forward. I began by showing a connection between the total
well being of the common man and the care of his environment. In doing this, I
highlighted the role of governance in ensuring this, focusing especially on the
importance of local governments. Thereafter, I proffered some suggestions as to
things the (local) government can do, proactively, concerning climate change in
Nigeria. Hopefully, now that the information is being gradually disseminated,
someone somewhere would notice and take a step.
I also promised to write further on why the citizenry;
Nigerians, show no or very little concern as regards climate change issues. At
this juncture, permit me to tell a little story to move this piece along. I was
in a discussion sometime last month involving about fifteen people, mostly
Nigerians. At some point, using the example of Lagosians and the Eko Atlantic
City project currently going on, one of the discussants; a foreigner, asked why
Nigerians are generally not concerned about things that should concern them.
Why there seems to be an ingrained sense of apathy in most Nigerians you come
across?
As expected, there were replies, none of which I can
remember because, honestly, none of them hit the nail on the head. Nigerians do
suffer from apathy but that is not the main issue. Instead, most Nigerians
suffer from what is called “the frog syndrome”. That is, if a frog is put in a
pot of cold water, and this pot is later placed on a gas burner, the frog would
keep trying to adjust to the rising temperature of the water until it is boiled
to death! As opposed to a random frog
that would immediately leap out when picked from a swamp or marsh and placed in
boiling water.
The average Nigerian makes utterances like “God Dey” and “E
Go Better”, believing that situations they find themselves in, are the way they
are meant to be - no matter how bad these situations are, and how worse they
are seriously becoming - when they should be doing something about it. It has
become a part of our psyche! Therefore, I believe that the average Nigerian is
not, or less concerned about climate change because he/she believes some
supernatural being/force somewhere either has permitted it to be so or has
plans to make positive (or not affect us)whatever negatives climate change may
bring.
Now, aside the above reason, an opinion poll, survey or
questionnaire of some sort, would have been best in providing primary data to
ascertain the real reasons why Nigerians are less concerned and mostly treat the
environment they occupy poorly, but that would have required resources beyond
my abilities. Hence, while acknowledging my limitation, I would still go ahead
and make an educated attempt at it, listing what I think are other possible
reasons - based on my interaction with people, experiences and assessment of
the social, economic, physical and psychological trends in Nigeria. They
include
- Poverty. Sadly, the general economic situation in Nigeria is not a very good one and as such, this has produced a negative ripple effect that has caused a lot of things. Poverty is one of such things. I can safely say a lot of Nigerians out there are still too poor to care for the environment. Therefore, it is until poverty is dealt with, as I stated in the last post in this series, that we can hopefully begin to truly see a positive change in our attitude towards climate change.
- Apathy. In relation to the above point on poverty, since I have said that most Nigerians are too busy trying to navigate their way out of poverty to concern their selves with climate change, what then is that part of the Nigerian populace that is made up of the average (comfortable) individual and the rich doing? What are the big companies, multinationals and corporations doing? Apparently, they have the resources required – are they putting them into use? Or perhaps, they are doing so, the question now is, are they putting in enough to ensure a change?
- Lack of general information. There is a need for the aggressive and massive education of the common Nigerian man about everything pertaining to climate change. Information on matters such as use of energy, water and sanitation, agricultural practices, air quality, number of vehicles on the road etc. is not available, and in cases where we do have information, more reliable data is still needed. If the Nigerian man knows better, we can expect better.
- Government doing very little. The government needs to create or improve on activities such as climate change sensitization programs to raise awareness, clean and efficient mass transport systems, clean and efficient mass transport systems, establishment of disaster management teams etc.
So, those are the few reasons why
I think Nigerians are not concerned about climate change. If you feel I didn’t
state a reason well enough, or it isn’t even supposed to be a reason, please
use the comment box and let me know. Also, if there are reasons you can think
of that I haven’t mentioned, kindly share. Thank you.
Because on the pyramid of needs, climate change is very near the top. People are hungry, need medical care and good education first. Otherwise even though climate change will affect them in the long run, they cannot do anything about it because of their more immediate problems. This is why it is mostly developed nations whose populations have largely resolved their basic needs that harp on about climate change.
ReplyDeleteIronically it was those developed nations that destroyed our climate in the first place.