PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte wants sanctions imposed against countries that violated the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, saying 'it will only fail and worsen the situation for the coming generation.'Speaking at the inauguration of a baseload coal-fired power plant in Saranggani on Friday night, Duterte questioned international policies in relation to climate change as he lamented its effects on developing countries like the Philippines.'UN should better understand that. It has to have a sanction for violators,' Duterte said, referring to the United Nations which has been organizing an annual conference for multilateral discussion on climate change.'Without a sanction, I do not think that it will succeed. It will only fail and worsen the situation for the coming generation,' he added.Duterte's statement came as he lamented that there seemed to be little progress in global efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change.He said it would be a 'waste of money' to attend a UN climate change conference because it was just 'all talk.''I am for climate change, I really am. I can understand. I have a little learning of everything. Not much but I can understand. Now the problem is the Climate Change Commission is always calling for a meeting. And always it’s how much carbon footprints you’ll leave on planet earth. And it’s all talking, it’s all conferences so that this time I said it would be a waste of money,' he said.The Philippines, under Duterte, is a party to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, which aims to slash greenhouse gases and keep global temperature increases to 'well below' 2 degrees Celsius.The President has expressed misgivings about the climate pact, saying it favored industrialized countries.Under the accord, Manila promised to cut carbon emissions by 70 percent by year 2030, even if the country is not a major emitter.However, Duterte lamented anew that some industrialized countries that also ratified the climate change deal have failed to commit to adopt the agreement.'But the one thing that is not present and therefore becomes a very inutile commission is it does not have sanctions. You can commit so many things there, excess of carbon monoxide and all, and yet there is no sanction,' he said.'You and I know that if you cannot arrest climate change now, sigurado ‘yan (it’s sure): Our children will suffer more severe climate changes, typhoons and all,' the President added.The Philippines is among nations most vulnerable to climate change. It constantly deals with heavy monsoon rains and is battered by an average of 20 typhoons per year.
