27 Feb 2019

Residents of Boro in the North West District have urged the Ministry of Agricultural Development and Food Security to replace their cattle which were killed after crossing into the buffalo fence on February 16.

Residents expressed their concern at a kgotla meeting with the Department of Veterinary Services this week.

Kgosi Motswagole Mokgwathi of Boro said residents were not happy with the manner in which their cattle were killed, adding that there was no consultation.

Kgosi Mokgwathi said the buffalo fence was dilapidated and that it was easy for cattle to go through the fence.

He said Boro residents expected a cordial relationship with government since they paved the way for the erection of the buffalo fence in 1984.

He said the agreement was that the fence would be maintained regularly and that people would be engaged to man the gates.

He also said they expected the assistant minister, permanent secretary or director to be present at the meeting, and not the same officers who killed their cattle as they might be conflicted.

Kgosi Mokgwathi also said Boro residents would keep lodging complaints if the Department of Veterinary Services kept on killing their cattle.

Meanwhile, veterinary officials and some village representatives went to inspect some parts of the fence.

Dr Nlingisisi Bayayani from the Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) unit in the Department of Veterinary Services stated that the buffalo fence was meant to prevent buffalos from mixing with livestock to prevent FMD outbreaks.

He said farmers on the other hand were expected to ensure that their cattle did not enter the Zone 16 disease control fence.

He said the policy gave veterinary officials permission to kill cattle found in the buffalo fence to prevent FMD outbreak.

Boro residents representative, Mr Gabofele Mokgwathi said residents request government to compensate farmers for their loss and trauma.

Mr Mokgwathi said the killing of their cattle was a concern, adding that residents believed the act was unlawful since there was no consultation, and that the buffalo fence was dilapidated.

He said they expected formal correspondence prior to the killing exercise, adding that affected farmers should have undergone counselling.

He added that there was no proper disposal of meat from the dead cattle as per FMD regulations, and that the veterinary officials used ungazetted entry points.

Mr Mokgwathi said Boro residents would engage the highest office in the ministry, and that they expected proper consultations.

North West Veterinary Services official, Dr Odireleng Thololwane advised Boro residents to use proper channels to raise their concerns with the department leadership.

Dr Thololwane said the initial correspondence was not clear that residents expected high ranking officials from the ministry.

Nonetheless, he said officers were bound by the Animal Disease Control Act to kill cattle which strayed into the buffalo fence. ENDS