WATCH: ‘We need your help!’ Member of KZN Legislature pleads with SAPS, government to intervene in Jozini elephant poaching crisis
Opposition party calls on national government to intervene in 'lawlessness'
AN oversight visit to Jozini Dam earlier today (Wednesday) turned into a call for national government and Police Minister Bheki Cele to pay serious attention to the elephant poaching crisis that has seen the illegal culling of more than 20 elephant on the dam’s eastern shores in recent weeks.
The illegal activity also saw a houseboat of international tourists get caught in the crossfire last month.
ALSO READ: WATCH: Tourists duck for cover as bullets fly on Jozini Dam
Heinz de Boer, DA spokesperson on Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (EDTEA) together with DA KZN Leader Francois Rodgers visited the dam to assess the overall situation, including gill netting activities.
Meeting with Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife and private landowners, the party is attempting to find solutions to what De Boer described as a ‘complex situation’.
“There’s no doubt in my mind there’s a criminal syndicate at work here, [with] potential smuggling going on, and certainly the elephants are under great pressure here,” said De Boer.
“We’ve had 40 elephants that have so far moved across into Swaziland and 11 that remain on South African soil in an Ezemvelo protected area which is under siege.
“It is only the SAPS Waterwing from Richards Bay that has done anything to prevent the poaching and illegal gill netting of this vital tourist area. It’s one of two dams in South Africa where there are tiger fish, and we want to commend SAPS Richards Bay Waterwing for the work they are doing. They are a unit that everyone should be proud of.”
De Boer said the DA would continue to drive this issue in the Legislature and ensure the remaining elephant are protected and relocated, and that the injured elephant is dealt with in an appropriate manner, and that Jozini Dam is secured and protected for public use.
“We cannot allow tourism and economic development in this district, which is one of the poorest districts in South Africa, to be affected by this lawlessness that continues to be exhibited in this area.”
De Boer concluded by calling on the national government and Police Minister Bheki Cele to send specialised units to Jozini Dam to ‘deal with this lawlessness’.
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