Video: Guyana President Refuses to be Lectured by the People Who Polute the Most
Guyana President Mohamed Irfaan Ali dished out an incredible beatdown of a woke British “journalist” in a debate over “climate change.”
The BBC’s Stephen Sackur, who hosts the interview program HARDTalk, attempted to ambush Ali with a question regarding the country preparing to extract oil and gas off its coast. He tried to hide behind “experts” who claimed this would result in billions of carbon emissions being emitted.
But Ali quickly flipped the tables on him with an extended, brilliant response based on cold, hard facts. He first pointed out that Guyana has a vast forest bigger than England and Scotland combined.
He then turned to Shakur, saying “I will lecture you on climate change!” after the Brit tried to interrupt him and continued his rant. He pointed out Guyana has the lowest deforestation rate in the world, and even with the most extensive possible extraction of oil and gas; the country would still be at net zero emissions.
But Ali was not finished. He then pointed out the hypocrisy of Western journalists lecturing poor countries like Guyana when their countries have destroyed the environment and destroyed biodiversity throughout the world. Guyana, on the other hand, has maintained its biodiversity and protected the environment.
Transcript:
Sackur: Let’s take a big picture look at what is going on here. Over the next decade, two decades, there will be $150 billion worth of oil and gas extracted off your coast.
It’s an extraordinary figure…that means, according to experts, more than 2 billion tons of carbon emissions will come from your seabed and be released into the atmosphere. I don’t know if you, as a head of state, went to COP…
Ali: Let me stop you right there! Do you know that Guyana has a forest that is the size of England and Scotland combined? A forest that stores 90.5 gigatons of carbon. A forest that we have kept alive…
Sackur: Does that give you the right to release all of this carbon…
Ali: Does that give you the right to lecture us on climate change?” I will lecture YOU on climate change!
Because we have kept this forest alive, that stores 90.5 gigatons of carbon. That you enjoy. That the world enjoys. That you don’t pay us for. That you don’t see a value in…Guess what? We have the lowest deforestation rate in the world.
And guess what? Even with our greatest extraction of the oil and gas resources we have now, we (Guyana) will still be at net zero.
Shakur: Powerful words, Mr. President, but…
Ali: I am not finished just yet. Because this is a hypocrisy that exists in the world.
The world in the last 50 years has lost 65% of its biodiversity. We have kept our biodiversity.
Are you valuing it? Or are you in the pockets of those who have damaged the environment…have destroyed the environment via the Industrial Revolution? Are you in their pockets?
