We cannot afford to drop the ball now

Sir,

The laxity from different countries and people around the world in dealing with the climate crisis is slowly catching up with us. The unfortunate part is that we still have people who insist on implementing and facilitating projects that will have a bearing on the climate and will further lead us down a slippery slope. What many are failing to comprehend is just how crucial the climate issue has become. According to the United Nations, rising temperatures are fuelling environmental degradation, natural disasters, weather extremes, food and water insecurity, economic disruption conflict and terrorism.

Burning

Sea levels are rising, the Arctic is melting, coral reefs are dying, oceans are acidifying and forests are burning. It is clear that business as usual is not good enough. As the infinite cost of climate change reaches irreversible highs, now is the time for bold collective action.

Between 2030 and 2050, climate change is expected to cause approximately 250 000 additional deaths per year, from malnutrition, malaria, diarrhoea and heat stress. The direct damage costs to health is estimated to be between US$2-4 billion/year by 2030. Areas with weak health infrastructure – mostly in developing countries – will be the least able to cope without assistance to prepare and respond.

Emission

Reducing emissions of greenhouse gases through better transport, food and energy-use choices can result in improved health, particularly through reduced air pollution.

While no one is safe from these risks, the people whose health is being harmed first and worst by the climate crisis are the people who contribute least to its causes and who are least able to protect themselves and their families against it – people in low-income and disadvantaged countries and communities.

The climate crisis threatens to undo the past 50 years of progress in development, global health and poverty reduction, and to further widen existing health inequalities between and within populations.

While the reasons for pushing for the retention of fossil fuels might seem valid to some, it remains critical to look at the bigger picture. Fossil fuels are a quick solution which will bring long-term turmoil and unfortunately, Africa will be the most affected.

Projects

We cannot afford to drop the ball now and push for projects that will benefit the current generation, but bring misery for the next. By allowing leaders to derail us from combating climate change, we are setting a bad precedence for our children and their children and might just be premeditating the deaths of the generations to come.

Some might think the last bit might be an exaggeration but I have never been more serious. Leaders around the world continue to be at fault and the sole downplayers of the climate crisis. There is no excuse for leaders to bolster quick fixes which will be at the detriment of each country in the long- run, what the people are owed in terms of the climate crisis are accountability and action which will push us towards a net zero emission target by 2050 at the very least.

K T

Sir,

Anyone over the age of reason has probably come into contact with numerous persons in the service industry. There seems to be a growing trend among service industry personnel of discarding the age-old adage ‘the customer is always right’, and replacing it with some new, born-free pseudo wisdom where the customer doesn’t even hardly matter!

When did it become okay for a person handing me my food to deliver it on a tray of scowls and with a side of scorn? I don’t understand, why are you scowling, do you scorn me?

What did I ever do to you that I deserve a growl as soon as I walk into the establishment that probably should have defined properly what ‘greeting customers’ means when they hired you?

We all know serving isn’t the most glamorous job, but please, honey, leave the drama at home so I can enjoy my meal in peace. A good server can be the difference between an enjoyable experience and a severe case of trauma.

Luckily for us in Eswatini, car guards are yet to impose themselves on our parking lots like an incurable cancer. In neighbouring South Africa, escalating car thefts have led to the emergence of so-called car guards, who will ‘watch’ your car and then expect a ‘tip’ when you return to find it right where you left it, having done nothing much at all. Innovative, I admit, but alas: Why are you so pushy? Why are you shouting at me? Why are you touching me?

Is there anything worse than going to a new place and finding out that a fried egg, beetroot and guava sandwich would have gone down better than the toxic waste masquerading as food on your plate? I am of the opinion that these places should be named and shamed, the public has a right to know! Conversely, places that do the word ‘food’ justice should be applauded.

Xoliswa