Georgetown: Former President Bharrat Jagdeo has emphasized the importance of President David Granger attending the upcoming 21 Conference of the Parties (COP 21) which opens on Monday November 30, 2015 in Paris.
Speaking to the media Saturday at a press conference at Freedom House, the Opposition Leader whose specialty area is climate change, stated that with Granger’s presence at the international conference it will make Guyana’s voice be heard and its position on climate change.
President Granger is in Malta attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), which concludes on November 29.
It is not clear whether the President will be attending the conference in Paris, however, the attendance of Minister of Governance, Raphael Trotman has been confirmed.
He said he has received many calls concerning his position on the upcoming conference, hence, he decided to make his position public.
The former President believes that the A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) government does not have a vision when it comes to climate change.
He spoke of the efforts he made for Guyana to remain relevant on the international scene.
“Globally, we have lost momentum because we are not clear on government’s climate policy, we have lost momentum in relation to the leadership role that we played in many of these forum,” Jagdeo highlighted.
He however told the media that he is willing to work with the government, offer advice and share his expertise on climate change.
With regard to the Paris talks, Jagdeo stated that he is pleased to see that there seems to be a renewed momentum after Copenhagen.
He pointed to efforts being made to talk down what will come out of Paris, which should not be supported. He said leaders should go to Paris and push for a good legally binding agreement.
“We have a great opportunity in Paris to do what we did not do in Copenhagen when the world had expected great things and a globally binding agreement which would have been the turning point for how we treat carbon based economies in the world. Paris offers that opportunity again,” he stressed.
However, according to him, the question is, will countries rise up to the level of making full use of the opportunity? He also questioned whether there is enough political will to make Paris a success.
According to Jagdeo, the issues have been put to the table and the position of countries are known, however, it is now up to negotiators to come up with something that is globally binding.
COP 21 is the annual meeting of all countries which want to take action for the climate. It will be held in Le Bourget, France, from 30 November to 11 December.
COP21 one of the largest diplomatic conferences ever organized, aside from the United Nations General Assembly sessions in New York.
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