Read at :
http://www.ngonewsafrica.org/?p=6140
Nigeria : The steady march of the desert towards the Atlantic Ocean
Though politics has taken centre stage in Nigeria’s national discourse and would remain so till after the April general elections, unusual happenings around the world should compel the nation’s leaders to take more serious steps to address the grave and unnerving consequences of global warming and climate change.
The unprecedented adverse weather conditions that have been recorded in several parts of the world are undoubtedly the direct consequences of the depletion of the ozone layer caused by global warming which is a consequence of the activities of man that are harmful to the environment.
There was, for instance, extreme snowing in some parts of Europe and the Americas while some other places have witnessed flash floods, super storms, mudslides or droughts of inexplicable dimensions that have left thousands of people displaced, turned many more into refugees and resulted in several thousands, both rich and poor, dead across the world.
As Nigeria’s political leaders at all levels of government strategize on how to outwit their political opponents, therefore, they must also dedicate time to figuring out how to contain the type of disasters and avert the level of catastrophes that have left parts of the world considered better developed prostrate.
The heavy snowing in Europe and parts of America paralyzed activities for weeks, including crippling land and air transportation services which left many passengers, including Nigerians stranded.
Desertification has also been a major problem, especially in the Northern part of the country and it has also led to serious economic and social challenges. The steady march of the desert towards the Atlantic Ocean must, indeed, be stopped if the social tensions, clashes between herdsmen and farmers, displacement of people, poverty, hunger, diseases and deaths that it causes are not to continue and attain emergency proportions.
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