Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
A group on the platform of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), has tasked the federal government to emulate the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Saudi Arabia that have transited from fossil fuel to cleaner energy if the country must address the problem of climate change.
The Executive Director, CISLAC, Auwal Ibrahim made the appeal at the Civil Society Organizations training on Fossil Phase-out Advocacy held in Benin.
Mr. Ibrahim said clean energy is expensive but the government most be able to bridge the gap for the Nigerian masses to be able to embrace it.
The Executive Director of CISLAC represented by Mr. Mohammed Murtala, Senior Administration Officer, of CISLAC, hinted that part of the organization’s advocacy engagement is that, government must begin to properly utilize the fossil fuel in a way that resources are now made available to transit because transition is not just about moving alone, it’s about how, where do you get resources to make the movement happen.
He said that government has to take ownership because it is the responsibility of the government to provide social services and that, one of the social services is electricity.
Speaking on the topic:”Taxation as a tool for accelerated energy transition”, Mr. Chinedu Bassey, one of the resource persons, said there is no other way that energy will be funded except the instrumentality of taxation.
He said such does not necessarily mean that people will be taxed differently in that regards but it is to make provisions from the already existing tax framework.
Bassey added that, maybe a few introductions like the carbon tax and also the green tax which have implications.
For the Executive Director, Connected Advocacy, Mr. Israel Irekah, while speaking on the essence of the training in Benin, said it is to build local capacity and raise awareness for energy transition in Nigeria