Andrew
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Wednesday that the UN Secretariat does not take money from the oil and gas industry.
“I can guarantee that the UN Secretariat does not (take money from the oil and gas industry),” he told reporters. “Our orientation has been for the Pension Fund to entirely divest from the fossil fuel system, which started by divesting from coal. And I believe they already reached full divesting from the fossil fuel industry in general.”
“And to the (UN) agencies, I strongly recommend not to receive any contribution (from) those that we consider have played the most important role in the climate change,” he said.
Guterres on Wednesday called for taxation on windfall profits of oil and gas companies from the current energy crisis.
“It is immoral for oil and gas companies to be making record profits from this energy crisis on the backs of the poorest people and communities and at a massive cost to the climate,” he said at the launch of the third report of his Global Crisis Response Group on Food, Energy and Finance over the Ukraine conflict.
“I urge all governments to tax these excessive profits and use the funds to support the most vulnerable people through these difficult times,” he said, noting that the combined profits of the largest energy companies in the first quarter of this year are close to US$100 billion. – Xinhua
derick.khumalo
Online Reporter