By Tony Icheku

Writing on routes to greatness, William Shakespeare wrote: '...Some achieve greatness...' specifying that some greatness are  not mere happenstance, but earned through  creativity, hard work, risk taking and perseverance. Thus for Rep Sam Onuigbo and four others, it is tangible, measurable achievements that earned them induction into the first ever National Assembly's  Most Valuable Parliamentarian, MVP Hall of Fame.


But what is greatness? The late Reggae crooner described it as man's "... integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively"


Sunday, May 21, 2023 would forever remain evergreen in Onuigbo's memory. That was the day, from the  motley assembly of 469 members of the 9th National Assembly, he and four others were tapped for special recognition as a  distinct class of excellent performers in the 9th National Assembly and subsequently inducted as  MVP Hall of Fame




According to the Executive Director of OrderPaper Nigeria,  the organiser of the MVP Hall of Fame project,  the process of selection was based on performance appraisal "The final five inductees emerged after four screening processes spanning three years, through several appraisals by independent and globally recognised appraisers using the metrics of Value, Volume, Impact, and Progression


He further added that the  MVP Hall of Fame is initiated  to enhance  legislative strengthening, and promotion of improved service delivery in the National Assembly. It also hopes to identify and sustain a distinct class of legislators who are performance-driven, excellence inspired, and public-spirited.


The annual appraisals and consideration for the MVP nomination and subsequent shortlisting focused exclusively on the core legislative functions of lawmaking, essentially applying the criteria of value, impact and productivity.


The screening of the 469-member National Assembly threw  up a finalists of  25 which saw Onuigbo emerging top performer  in Qualitative, Impact, and Value category.


Other categories appraised include Top Performers- Senate Productivity Index; Top Performers - House of Representatives Productivity Index; and Top Performers- House of Representatives Newbies.


Onuigbo earned his stripes for his sponsorship of the Climate Change Act 2021, a bill experts describe as having inter-generational, and globally, plus capability of laying the foundation for a sustainably developed Nigeria


Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon Femi Gbajabiamila speaking about the Act, says it will perhaps surpass generations yet to come: "I have always said it’s not the number of bills but the quality of bills that are passed.


“The Climate Change Act  is one of those bills that on the face of it nobody bothers to even try to understand but on the closer examination and a proper understanding of what it entails, it is perhaps one of those life-changing bills, one of those bills that can affect each and every one of us for life. So I would recommend that many of us do some research on the impact of climate change and how topical it is in the world today. It is a very significant bill.

 

“Hon Sam has been so passionate and committed and consistent in the pursuit of having this bill signed into law. His doggedness, his determination to make sure he sees the bill from the beginning to the very end has earned my respect in no small measure.

 

“He has done so much on the floor of the House since I have known him over years, but if this is the one bill that is his legacy in the National Assembly, then it is one bill that will perhaps surpass generations yet to come,” he said


Conservation experts describe the Act as  "..the first stand-alone comprehensive climate change legislation in West Africa and among few both globally and regionally, which has the potential to become a strategic tool for climate change advocacy and a legal foundation for potential climate mitigation in Nigeria" 


Rep Onuigbo noted that  Climate Change poses an existential threat to all of mankind, and that the journey to getting the Act was a long and tortuous one


According to him, “the Act will bring requisite attention to the menace of climate change, provide funding for adaptation and mitigation measures including nature-based solutions, create employment for the teeming youth, help us on our journey towards green recovery, and ultimately ensure that we sustainably develop while preserving this earth for our children.”


He added: "There are also provisions for the development of a carbon budget for Nigeria with the aim of attaining net zero emission between 2050-2070; establishment of the Climate Change Fund and provision of checks and balances through oversight by the National Assembly and the people having access to information in order to interrogate, where necessary, efforts being made.


"Others include provisions for climate education; setting up of mechanisms for carbon emissions trading and carbon tax; provision of support for research and scientific innovations and provisions for Nigeria to address climate change using nature-based solutions and many more.”


He added: “While some of us may not know it, the overarching impacts of climate change are daily faced by us even in Nigeria. From the many gully erosions that litter the Southeast, through the floods, coastal erosions in the South-South and even some parts of the South East including Anambra State, to desertification in the North and the corresponding security issues, to extreme heat and irregular rainfall, before our very eyes, the world as we know it is changing and bringing with it massive loss of livelihood and increased health challenges.


“With over US$14.5 trillion divested from fossil fuel, and many countries committing fully to transiting to net zero greenhouse gases emissions in the nearest future, the economic future of countries still dependent on fossil fuel for revenue is seriously being threatened as such countries face the risk of being left with stranded critical assets.


“But this is no cause for alarm as with this divestment comes increased investments in cleaner, greener and more sustainable energy sources. The potentialities for more jobs from this sector are immense with tens of millions of new job opportunities becoming available for the people.


“That way, our efforts at combating climate change and preserving our environment for our children do not only help preserve our environment and the future, these efforts also address our massive unemployment issues as a country"


For the vision in conceptualising the Act, the doggedness in ensuring it was promulgated as an Act of the National Assembly, Onuigbo showed, he is indeed made of sterner stuff. However, it is one thing to have an excellent policy document and another to milk it. Nigeria is not  bereft of plans and policies that would have transformed it into the comity of a World class elite Nation, we still search for the leadership, the political will to do the right thing at the right time.