By Bamidele F. Oni
While the stage is been set towards actualizing a way forward as regards the new climate treaty in Paris which is just some few days away, a view from behind the scene has revealed a speck of potential threat to the success of the conference of parties and if necessary actions are not taken, we might have to just kiss the possibility of a consensual outcome goodbye after all.
One good question to ruminate upon here is “what becomes of a meeting that wants a solution to a problem and yet allows the problem givers a position of control?” Such is the case with the big polluters standing in as the big spenders supporting the climate meeting in Paris.
Now this is the absolute tricky part which is aimed at sending a rather mixed signal of being in support of a positive outcome of the climate negotiations, whereas the endgame is basically to stand as saboteurs with the wrong influence.
It is quite disheartening to find among the corporate sponsors of COP21, culprits that have overtime proven their positions as the biggest polluting organizations in the world with heavy investments in hydraulic fracturing, oil sand explorations and coal fired power plant.
It only sounds reasonable to deduce the fact that the big polluters would in every way stand to protect their profit oriented interest at the climate talks and this would definitely go against the global anticipation of a decisive action this time around.
The portrayal of a market based system of influence could definitely take precedence all again at this year’s conference of parties and if these big polluters are not shown the way out as soon as possible, it is quite certain that their biased interest would find the usual way of corrupting the aligned sequence of event for a fruitful outcome.
The whole scenario seems like a strategy of the culprit organizations trying to outsmart every move of bringing down the fossil fuel industry while devising every known means to slowing down the pace of action.
Realizing the possibilities of an imminent shifting of focus from fossil based economy and the projected loss on their part, they have chosen to be part of the pivots holding up the platform built to end their reign of terror and this is a plan to ridicule the stand to end the fossil reliant days of mankind.
The journey towards arriving at this point has really being a long one and the past records have proven the wrong intentions of the polluters, they simply do not have the best of interest of the safety of the Earth’s future at heart and all that matter is the potential for more markets and more profits at the expense of our climate deteriorating with every measure of carbon dioxide allowed into our atmosphere by their non- conforming actions.
The expectation for COP21 is really on the high side of positive deal and the presence of the polluters is nothing but a threat to a meaningful outcome.
We must not allow for what happened in Copenhagen to make a repeat of itself in Paris and that would only happen if the climate plotters would do well in showing the dirty sponsors the way out as no good can come out of such unhealthy union.
The polluters are not wanted in the circle of the climate talks this time around and who says the conference of parties won’t fare well in the hands of the other well minded sponsors other than the fossil industries?
We mustn’t bring the devil to the table again. We must show them the way out before they show us the way out of life.
Oni, the Executive Director of Green Impact International, writes from Abeokuta, Nigeria
