Arise TV anchor in Dubai, Ovieteme George, has discredited the presidency claims that Ijaw Youth Council sent 15-man delegates to COP28 and were not sponsored by the Federal Government.
There has been outrage over the high number of Nigeria’s delegates to the climate summit when the country is currently facing economic challenges.
However, in a statement released on Sunday night, December 3, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, said some people came to the conference independently but registered as delegates from Nigeria.
Ajayi said that Tony Elumelu, BUA chairman, Abdul Samad Rabiu, 15-members of the Ijaw Youth Council, media houses and others who attended the conference were registered as delegates from Nigeria.
He stated that the Federal government did not fund their trips to Dubai for the conference.
Part of the statement reads, “The President of Ijaw Youth Council, Jonathan Lokpobiri, leads a pan-Ijaw delegation of more than 15 people, who registered as parties from Nigeria.
“These businessmen and women and their staff who came with them to promote their own business interests are part of the 1,411 delegates from Nigeria. Their trip to Dubai is not funded by the Federal Government.”
However, Ovieteme, one of the journalists covering the climate conference in Dubai, disputed the claims that the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) is attending with 15 members.
The journalist said he came for the conference with the IYC delegation and is aware that only the president, secretary, and a few others are part of the IYC delegation, stressing that FG’s claim is strange to him.
When questioned about what some delegates were doing, Ovieteme said the Nigerian pavilion in Dubai was empty and unaware of what most of them were doing there.
