Sunday, April 3, 2011

US Advancement: Implication for Nigeria

Dear Comrades,
Below are excerpts from President Obama’s Remarks on America’s Energy Security to Students of Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.
http://www.america.gov/st/texttrans-english/2011/March/20110330161241su0.1980402.html

'In an economy that relies so heavily on oil, rising prices at the pump affect everybody -– workers, farmers, truck drivers, restaurant owners, students who are lucky enough to have a car. (Laughter.) Businesses see rising prices at the pump hurt their bottom line. Families feel the pinch when they fill up their tank. And for Americans that are already struggling to get by, a hike in gas prices really makes their lives that much harder. It hurts'.

'And we will keep on being a victim to shifts in the oil market until we finally get serious about a long-term policy for a secure, affordable energy future'


'So today, my administration is releasing a Blueprint for a Secure Energy Future that outlines a comprehensive national energy policy, one that we’ve been pursuing since the day I took office. And cutting our oil dependence by a third is part of that plan'


'So the only way for America’s energy supply to be truly secure is by permanently reducing our dependence on oil. We’re going to have to find ways to boost our efficiency so we use less oil. We’ve got to discover and produce cleaner, renewable sources of energy that also produce less carbon pollution, which is threatening our climate. And we’ve got to do it quickly'.


'Now, another substitute for oil that holds tremendous promise is renewable biofuels -– not just ethanol, but biofuels made from things like switchgrass and wood chips and biomass'.


'I don’t want to leave this challenge for future Presidents. I don’t want to leave it for my children. I don’t want to leave it for your children. So, yes, solving it will take time and it will take effort. It will require our brightest scientists, our most creative companies. It will require all of us –- Democrats, Republicans, and everybody in between -– to do our part. But with confidence in America and in ourselves and in one another, I know this is a challenge that we will solve'


...I read it and left unfinished. Then i began to think of Nigeria's future. If her highest buyer of oil will at the long-run gradually withdraw; what will or is the alternative? How sad, my country has refused to learn yet. See us concentrating on boosting foreign reserve when our economy power houses are crumbling.

So, it is wrong to use the capital we now earn from oil to make huge investment in Agriculture? Or does Nigeria lack the capacity to start thinking of alternative sources of power generation? Brazil has alreay started it; US is also doing it; what stops Nigeria?

Nigeria's leadership needs more seriousness and rethink than ever. Becasue, the future is just here.