By Jonathan Lois
The House of Representatives has directed the Clerk to the National Assembly (CNA) to immediately implement a Tree Replacement Policy, ensuring that for every tree cut down within the National Assembly Complex or its surrounding Three Arms Zone, at least three indigenous species are planted in designated areas.
The resolution followed the adoption of a motion on “Promoting Sustainable Green Practices in the Three Arms Zone” sponsored by Hon. Jesse Okey-Joe Onuakalusi.
The House also mandated the National Assembly Management, in collaboration with the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), to develop and enforce a Green Infrastructure Development Framework.
The framework is expected to integrate tree preservation, landscaping, and ecological protection into all future construction plans in the Three Arms Zone.
The Committees on Environment and Habitat, and Federal Capital Territory were directed to liaise with the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), the Ecological Fund Office, and other relevant environmental protection agencies to conduct a comprehensive audit of all green spaces lost to recent constructions and farming activities within the zone.
The House approved the establishment of a Legislative Green Task Force to drive and monitor environmental sustainability efforts within the National Assembly premises and its environs.
Lawmakers further condemned in strong terms the indiscriminate felling of trees and destruction of green areas in and around the National Assembly Complex.
They warned that such practices undermine Nigeria’s commitments to climate change mitigation, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the country’s National Climate Change Policy.
The motion’s sponsor, Hon. Onuakalusi, had earlier expressed concern that trees and green spaces within the Three Arms Zone were being cleared under the guise of development and farming without proper environmental impact assessments or plans for reforestation.
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