Buhari pledges to implement Audit Report on Lake Chad, demands explanation on previous report
President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday pledged to implement the recommendations of Environmental Audit Report on Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) .
He made the pledge after receiving the report at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.
Buhari pledged that Nigeria would continue to support the Lake Chad Commission in the discharge of its duties.
“As a member of the Lake Chad Basin Commission Summit of Heads of State and Governments, the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has been given maximum support to Lake Chad Basin Commission to ensure the discharge of its mandate.
“In additional to funding the Lake Chad Basin Commission ordinary annual budget through the funding formula to which Nigeria contributes 40 per cent; Niger seven per cent; Libya 18 per cent; Chad 11 per cent; Cameroun 20 percent and Central African Republic four per cent.
“Our government is committed to offer effective leadership in the fight against insurgency and other environmental ills of the Sahel region.
“Since the audit reports have been fully submitted to Lake Chad Basin Commission Summit of Heads of State and Government, we will ensure that the recommendations are considered for implementation.’’
He reiterated Nigeria’s determination to offer effective leadership in fighting insurgency and tackling other environmental challenges of the Sahel region.
The President, therefore, called on the National Assembly to expedite action on the domestication of the Lake Chad Basin Water Charter adopted by the Summit of the Authority of Heads of States and Governments in April 2012.
Buhari also demanded an explanation on the report of a study on the diversion of some rivers from Central African Republic into the Chad basin initiated by the military regime of Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo (rtd).
He said that the study, which gulped about five million dollars, was sponsored by Nigeria.
“(Retired) Gen. Obasanjo and I understand that Gen. Obasanjo took the initiative sometimes ago.
“He gave 5 million dollars to the study, and the study was that unless some of the rivers from the Central Africa Republic are diverted to empty into Chad Basin, Lake Chad will dry up.
“I understand that this report which was sponsored by Nigeria has been submitted.
“I am a bit disappointed that in the speech of the Auditor-General, there was no mention of this report whether my research was correct: that five million dollars was given.
“One of the recommendations was that at the time the report was submitted, the cost of diverting one of the rivers to empty into Lake Chad would be between 13billion and 15billion dollars.
“I will like the Auditor-General to comment on this.’’
Earlier, the Auditor-General of the Federation, Mr Samuel Ukura, said that the report of the study identified construction of dams and excessive diversion of rivers as some of the factors responsible for the drying up Lake Chad.
He also identified other causes of the drying up of the lake to include poor water management and failure to enforce penalties for the indiscriminate violation of the Lake Chad.
Responding to the President’s comment on the initial report sponsored by Nigeria during Obasanjo’s military regime, Ukura said that his group did not study the report.
According to him, the Lake Chad Basin Commission may be in a better position to comment on it.
Also commenting on the same report, the representative of the commission, Malam Sanusi Abdullahi, said that the report was already in the public domain.
“The situation is that the study had been completed. The cost estimate for the project is 14.5 billion dollars.
“We have been consulting the Congo Basin to allay their fears on the environmental impact assessment they want us to add and we need some additional political support to be able to convince them that it is also in their interest to see that this water is diverted to Lake Chad.
“We have made efforts with the Champion of Save Lake Chad, former President (Olusegun) Obasanjo, to sensitise the international community, particularly Europe whom we perceived have some unfriendly attitude towards the transfer.’’ (NAN)