28 Feb 2013

Principal wildlife warden, Mr Phepa Babopi has dismissed as baseless reports that buffaloes were being killed in Maun.

Speaking in an interview, Mr Babopi from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP) said they sent a team of wildlife officers to farms in Makalamabedi to attend to five buffaloes in that area.

The officers, he said, were still trying to drive the buffaloes back into the forest.

He indicated that the other report they received in Maun was from Shorobe, where a woman was reported to have been bitten by a snake and had been hospitalised.

Mr Babopi cautioned people to be vigilant when they see buffaloes and to refrain from confronting them as they were aggressive and dangerous. 

For his part, Mr Eustice Handura, the principal scientific officer at the Department of Veterinary Services (DVS) said he was not aware of any buffaloes being killed in Maun.

He said they worked hand in hand with officials from wildlife and they had not yet received such reports.

Unconfirmed reports of buffaloes being killed in Maun were abuzz over the weekend, with some people claiming to have seen about 20 beasts.

However, police in Maun did not receive any such reports. ENDS