The DA in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) calls for a raft of new conservation legislation to be urgently tabled to further assist Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife (EKZNW) in solving ongoing lion escapes and the scourge of poaching within the Hluhluwe-Mfolozi Park (HIP).
Overdue by at least four years, the new conservation Bill will not only replace the outdated Nature Conservation Ordinance of 1974 – but hopefully strengthen public private partnerships that have been sorely neglected within Ezemvelo.
A reply (view here) to DA parliamentary questions has now revealed that the much-vaunted Ezemvelo smart fencing was in fact installed by an NGO – and not the R1 billion government entity, EKZNW.
Moreover, Ezemvelo have since 2020 relied on poles, droppers and fencing with no new contracts coming online to keep animals in and poachers out.
Worryingly, EKZNW claims not a kilometre of the 160km perimeter is unfenced. Yet sources have clearly defined sections of the Western HIP boundary as virtually unfenced and unsecured.
Meanwhile, the R40 million in fencing funds – donated to Ezemvelo by the National Government – have yet to show results. All indications point to Isimangaliso initiating the contract, with the fence project now only at the beginning stages of the tender process.
The DA continues to sympathise with Ezemvelo’s ordinary field rangers and ground staff who continue to risk their lives in the ongoing fight against poaching. However, the total disrepair of most Ezemvelo facilities and their fences can no longer be tolerated.
Despite the challenges, there has been little political will from KZN’s ANC-run government to pass legislation, procure budgets, hold managers to account and get this critical entity on an even keel. Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (EDTEA) MEC, Siboniso Duma and the former MEC, now Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube, should hang their heads in shame over the entire Ezemevelo debacle.
It is the mandate of this department to ensure the protection and survival of KZN’s natural heritage – a task it is failing dismally. The people of our province will have the opportunity to save not only Ezemvelo but KZN when they go to the polls in 2024.