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#World Environment Day

Today is #worldenvironmentday. There was #earthday celebrated on April 22 amidst the lockdown brought on by the Covid-19 virus pandemic. Now, we are marking World Environment Day in the midst of another uproar and protest in America and all round the world because of the racist and prejudiced killing of George Floyd, a black man by a white cop and his colleagues who looked on as he brutally took the life of another human being. I wept as I watched the video on Twitter, Instagram and Yahoo News. How can people be so unfeeling to kill and murder just because you are armed and  wearing a uniform ? And worst still, because he is black? I still don’t get it. This is so beyond reasoning, and I would call it what it is....satanic!

Anyway, the whole world is arising in protest to the injustice done by a white cop to a black man, a move that should have taken place a long time ago before now as the situation regarding racial discrimination and injustice has eaten so deep into the American system that it has gotten way out of   hand. In my opinion, situations like these could have been avoided if these issues had been addressed and nibbed in the bud at the early stages. And this is so like the environmental issues we are dealing with right now. Are we going to wait till situations escalate and get out of hand before we create policies and take deliberate measures and actions to stop air pollution, global warming and climate change? Are we going to just sit still and do nothing to stop the incessant littering of debris on our #African streets? Are we going to continue to take down trees to flourish the timber and furniture industry at the expense of the environment, and not plant back to replace what has been removed?
 Or are we going to continue to dig for fossil fuels at the expense of marine and aquatic life, creating imbalances in the ecosystem which affect both human and plant life? The list goes on and on.

I strongly believe that if we don’t rise to the occasion sooner, and when I say sooner, I mean right at this moment, we are going to face dire consequences brought on by our actions. We have talked about climate change and global warming enough. The issue of air pollution and all other forms of pollution have  been trashed enough. It’s time to take action and invest in greener alternatives.
There is an abundance of radiant energy which can be channeled to produce electricity instead of damming our rivers to produce electricity. Let’s use it. Banning the use of old and worn out vehicles especially in Africa that give rise to air pollution is another move that must take effect. Also the use of fossil fuels and incessant drilling of oil and flaring of gas,  should be stopped. This is one of the major causes of global warming. Policing the environment from littering by insensitive passers by can be put into effect and all forms of dishonest actions by these environmental scouts should be checked and penalized severely, especially in Africa.
Every man, woman, boy and girl can plant a tree anywhere, whether at home or in school, as long as you have a space you can call your environment.

Finally. I appeal to local, state and federal governments in Africa and nations of the world, as we mark World Environment Day today, let’s rise up to the occasion by creating favorable policies and implementing them to save our planet earth. If we don’t embark upon this journey consistently and not sporadically, the earth and environment may be ravaged right before our very eyes!

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