Now in Kebbi State,
The Governor there
Heeded the cry
Of the  Environment
And caused the Ministry
To plant some trees
Green…

First of all, this a great attempt to green the state. It is another subtle reminder that those who bequeath the Green-White-Green national flag to Nigeria, wished we continued the greening process, in all ages. It is as if they knew that we would be endangered without maintaining the greenery of our environment, graciously given to us by nature. So, they crafted our identity and national flag out of the dominant cues from our environment of yesteryears. What was the dominant colour from our environment in the yester-years if not colour green? And what does the colour green communicate once again? Life, fresh, new, beginning, sustaining, sustainable, reliable, dependable, beautiful, and so much more. Who has ever taken in a reasonable measure of greenery, and gone away disappointed? The reverse is always the case. Anyone who draws in a reasonable measure of greenery always leave refreshed and renewed.

Can you see how the greenery gesture is a special gift to the environment in the sense that whatever enriches the environment, enriches everyone who lives within it, directly and indirectly? Can you imagine the delightsome breeze the leaves will modulate and moderate for our pleasure? And can you imagine the impressive covers the shady woods would provide accordingly? What of the smell of freshness that would invite the birds from afar to string their tunes and spread their melodies around? In this case, the birds would not be the only ones singing, we would whisper our own tunes too.

Secondly, if we transferred that popular saying of the sages about saying and doing, to the environment, we may better understand what happened in Kebbi State recently. “What you are doing is so loud that I cannot hear what you are saying.” Now, let’s move it to the environment – “What the environment is doing is so loud that we cannot hear what the environment is saying.” That the environment has been ‘acting out’ and ‘protesting’ our general insensitivity and lack of care in ‘nonverbal’ ways, is not in doubt. Combining ‘verbal’ and ‘non-verbal’ methods, the environment, now speaks loudly to all of Have you heard the sounds of flash floods? And have you or someone you know, complained about ‘unbearable heat?’ more frequently these days? Have you heard the sound of deforestation in many parts of Nigeria? Those are examples of the environment combining ‘verbal’ and non-verbal means to speak to us.

By their action, Governor Atiku Bagudu, and the Honorable Hayatudeen Bawa-led Ministry of the Environment in Kebbi State, have indicated that they have heard some of the cry of the environment and want to heed it. The applause from the environment only belong to those who hear its cry and heed its call. Those who hear the voice of the environment and do nothing about its cries of neglect and abandonment, receive no applause from it, today or the more important tomorrow.

Thirdly, is the matter of timing. Because they chose the right time to release the trees. When is the best time to plant a tree, according to the sages, again? Now. Now is the best time to plant a tree. Because the strings linking tomorrow’s opportunities have been handed over to us today. These strings usually come to us as the inspiring gestures and examples of others. If we emulate these gestures and examples, then we position ourselves correctly to receive the kindness of the environment, when tomorrow comes.