Ogba Zoo Threatened By Menace Of Land Grabbers

As pillaging and wanton destruction of the last of Edo State’s urban forestry assets within Ogba Zoo and Nature Park continues unabated and now assuming dangerous dimensions, the management of the zoo has called on the State government to take decisive action in stopping the land poachers from further decimating this natural heritage, which over the years has suffered series of damage to its fortunes.

Following the latest incursions on the zoo by the desperate land grabbers, the management in an open letter to the governor of the State, titled: Further horrific destruction of Ogba Zoo infrastructure / nature park: Another open letter to the Comrade Governor, chronicles the ongoing plight of the zoo, which are symptomatic of anarchy. It reminded the governor of the recent decisions taken by Government to secure the Zoo but which have not been implemented. While frantically calling on the governor to immediately deploy state apparatus to restore order in respect of saving this priceless asset, the Zoo management also called for the setting up of a panel of enquiry as the last ditch effort to unravelling what appear to be conspiracies to share the Zoo land.

Fingered in these land poaching acts are members of the zoo’s neighbouring communities from Utagban and Ogbaneki, who are believed to be aided and abetted by some officials of the State government and members of the State House of Assembly. In this recent incursion, the land poachers deployed arson that destroyed over 70% of the zoo’s natural wildlife habitats, before the use of bulldozers, which has now turned the once forested land into a construction site for different private structures.

With the administration of Comrade Governor Adams Oshiomhole on its last lap, the zoo management is making frantic appeal to it to rise up to the challenge of stemming this encroachment crises in order to leave a good conservation and tourism legacy. The Governor’s urgent intervention is required since he is already abreast of the issues at stake and in order for him to ‘finish well’ his tour of duty as Governor of the state. The Zoo management is seriously baffled by the tendencies of the communities and some government officials, who don’t seem to understand the importance of the zoo in terms of its inherent scientific, educational, economic, environmental and human capacity development attributes, in this era of competitive progress.

In the open letter to the governor, which was signed by the chief executive of the zoo, Andy Osa Ehanire, he alluded to the efforts  of his Management, which for over a decade and half, has struggled to revive the Zoo under the Private – Public Sector Partnership (PPP) scheme of the state government, with the government not having to make any financial contribution.

He therefore reminded the governor of a recent State Executive Council’s pronouncement in the media that it would dislodge all manners of encroachments on the zoo, as well as the delineation and survey of the zoo land. So far, some of the culprits arrested at the many illegal construction sites on the zoo land, alleged representing House of Assembly members and other Government officials who they claim are beneficiaries of a purported sharing of the Zoo land.’’

He lamented that the encroachment has been so devastating to the extent that the expansive purpose-built lion enclosure across Ogba river was not only destroyed, but now surrounded with illegal building sites.

In fact, the audacity and antics of the land grabbers, as well as the persisting waves of encroachment, including the levels of their facilitation with official documents, are indicative of deep conspiracies and treachery by those who do not care if Edo State is buried in shame.

As at today, a security escort vehicle belonging to the state House of Assembly with plain clothes men was sighted giving protection to the operations of the bulldozer working on the zoo land. We have long been carrying the discomfort of appearing to be crying more than the bereaved, which has attracted all manner of threats to our persons and investments, being tenants to the state government in respect of the zoo.

The open letter, which was copied to the Commissioners for Environment and Public Utilities; Lands and Survey, Commissioner of Police, Edo State Command, as well as the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice; Secretary to the State Government and Speaker, Edo State House of Assembly, however, expressed confidence in the forthrightness of the governor in giving steam to the decisions earlier reached by the State Executive Council in dealing with the matters affecting the zoo.

Particularly hit by these unfortunate developments are students of higher institutions in the State and beyond, who regularly use the zoo for their field practical training and research in various disciplines such as Forestry and Wildlife, Botany, Zoology, Environmental Science, etc.

Many of the environmentalists in the state, patrons of the zoo, the public and members of the Nigeria Association of Zoological Gardens (NAZG) have also expressed grave concern over the delay by the State Government in taking decisive action against the growing lawlessness in land matters.