By Steve Oko
UMUAHIA — Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, has endorsed the establishment of the first national park in the South-East, directing the identification of a suitable forest reserve for the project.
Otti gave the approval when he received a delegation from the National Park Service, led by its Governing Council Chairman, Dr Kingsley Ononogbu, at his office in Umuahia.
The governor said the initiative aligned with his administration’s efforts to identify and preserve the state’s forest reserves, noting that he had earlier approved the tracing and identification of the reserves across the state.
According to him, Abia has 19 forest reserves, 18 of which are currently available for consideration, providing opportunities for conservation across the state’s 17 local government areas.
“Earlier this morning, I approved a request from the Honourable Commissioner for Environment for the tracing of forest reserves. Clearly, there is somewhere to start from,” Otti said.
He directed the Commissioner for Environment, Mr Philemon Asonye Ogbonna, to work with the National Park Service and environmental experts to identify a suitable location for the proposed park.
Otti also said the state would constitute a team of climate change and environmental experts to drive the project, stressing that conservation was essential to protecting the state’s natural resources.
“Nature is something you cannot do away with. Sometimes, when you think you have overcome nature through technology, nature will still rise. That is why conservation is very important,” he said.
Earlier, Ononogbu said the delegation was in the state to remind the governor of his earlier commitment to establishing a national park in Abia, noting that the South-East remained the only geopolitical zone without one.
“The South-East has zero in having a national park. This is a glaring omission that must be corrected, and Abia State, under your leadership, is best positioned to pioneer this change,” he said.
Ononogbu said the proposed park would create jobs and career opportunities, generate revenue, attract investment, boost tourism, improve security and help reduce crime.
He urged the state government to identify a suitable forest or game reserve, constitute a joint committee with the National Park Service and forward a formal proposal to the Minister of Environment or the Conservator-General of the National Park Service.
The Commissioner for Environment and other members of the State Executive Council attended the meeting.
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