A video of Guyana’s Indian-origin President Irfan Ali is going viral on social media.
In this video he is giving an interview to a journalist of a western media house on the issue of environment. Meanwhile, on the question of the journalist, he says that the West does not need to give lectures about the environment. Now you listen, I will give a lecture on this issue.
The journalist asked President Irfan Ali about the recently discovered large reserves of oil and oil extraction. The journalist said that there is a possibility of oil worth about 150 billion dollars being extracted in the upcoming mines.
This is a big figure. This means that there is going to be a lot of carbon emissions there. This will have an adverse effect on the environment.
After this President Irfan Ali said, do you have the right to lecture us? Who are you to lecture us? Let me lecture you on this matter.
Do you work for those who harmed the environment in the name of the Industrial Revolution? I stop you.
Do you know that Guyana has as much forest area as the total area of England and Scotland combined. There is a forest which stores 19.5 gigatons of carbon and we have saved that forest.
After this the reporter asked whether this would give Guyana the right to emit carbon as per its wish. After this the President said, do you get the right to lecture us? You and the whole world are enjoying the forests that we have saved.
Guyana has the least amount of deforestation in the world, he said. He said that even after producing such large quantities of petroleum, Guyana will remain a net zero carbon country.
The President said that western countries should pay for our forests. He said, in the last half century the world has lost more than half of its biodiversity. We have maintained our environment. Who are you to judge? Will the developed countries pay the price for the environment we have protected?
He said, when developing countries discover reserves of gas and oil, western countries start getting worried. Let us tell you that the President of Guyana did not allow the reporter to speak. The reporters seemed helpless before his arguments.