27 Apr 2022

Ms Salife Koloi stays at the farming lands around Mathathane in the Bobirwa area, with her male companion Mr Gabathalefe Dingalo, to eke a living out of crop production.

With every dawn they set their hopes on the sun to shine on them to get the best harvests ever.

However, when the sun goes down and darkness sets in, the marauding elephants that invade their fields and feed on the produce that could take farmers to the next farming season, become their worst nightmares.

Farmers’ fears are not limited to crop destruction, but they also fear for their lives, as they can be trampled upon by the jumbos.

In fact, Ms Koloi recalled an incident, one fateful night, when an elephant passed in close proximity to her, leaving her shaken and scared to death.

She narrated the ordeal, albeit in unprintable terms, of how she came close to wetting her pants, at the sight of the elephant that had waited until wildlife officers left at 2am, before appearing from the bush.

Ms Koloi’s fears may not necessarily transcend those of other farmers, who are faced with elephants’ conundrum.

During the tour by an entourage, that included Member of Parliament for the area, Mr Taolo Lucas, it was evident the elephants did not only leave their foot marks, but a trail of destruction on crops and fences.

In fact, at an earlier meeting, before touring affected fields, one Ms Kgobokgobo Onkemetse told the MP’s entourage that she rejected the calls to coexist with elephants.

She claimed that elephants were not only a problem to arable farmers, but also a danger to cattle keepers, who could not go looking for their livestock for fear of the gigantic animals.

It also surfaced at the meeting that the elephant problem was aided by the 4.5km stretch left when erecting the 30km electric backline fence by Terra Conservancy Operations and the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP).

Theories and counter theories abound about the said stretch, with some opining that the corridor was left for ease of driving out elephants, which had already encroached into human spaces, back to their area, and some arguing that the stretch was left to allow elephants ease of access into human spaces, since they were too many at the eastern side of the fence.

“It was by design to have that breathing point so that when elephants are many and troublesome the other side of the fence, they would encroach easily into our spaces,” alleged Mr Jack Manche.

As an amelioration, farmers want the problem animals driven out of their farms and the gap and corridor closed.

In fact, Kgosi Olgas Serumola of Mathathane revealed that they had held a meeting with the fence donor, a representative of Terra Conservancy Operations, who promised that he would close the gap if his conditions were met.

Apparently, the donor wanted the community to provide labour, but there should first be approval from  DWNP.

Actually, the farmers requested the area MP to set up a meeting with the director of DWNP to iron out the issues.

“We need an urgent meeting with the director.

I called him the other time so that he could come here and explain issues surrounding the corridor in detail and also for the fence donor to commit before him,” area councillor, Mr Mishack Makgosa said.

When quizzed about the farmers’ complaints, senior wildlife warden, Mr Baboloki Lefatlho confirmed the claims that indeed the elephants used the corridor to encroach into human spaces.

Mr Lefatlho said that the 4.5km corridor was not only problematic to farmers, but to wildlife officers in the area too, as they had to attend to reports of destruction by elephants on a daily basis.

“My office is currently seized and inundated with reports of destruction caused by elephants from farmers and it doesn’t sit well  with us at all,” he said.

In the meantime, farmers sought that the DWNP provides choppers to drive elephants from their fields and cattleposts, as they sought to produce food for selves and the nation.

What harrowed their hearts the most was that watermelons were not compensated for, though they were part of their farming produce that earned them money.

For his part, MP Lucas made a promise: “We will write to the permanent secretary about the fence issue and we will in the process seek expedited solutions to the nagging problem.”

Mr Lucas then scheduled a meeting with the same farmers for May 24. ENDS