• More than 700 compensation claims are pending in the county before KWS.
• They include over 20 deaths, 235 injuries and 452 crop destruction claims
Image: SOLOMON MUINGI
Taita Taveta Governor Granton Samboja plans to petition the Kenya Wildlife Service over what he calls unfair resources sharing in Tsavo National Park.
Speaking in Taveta yesterday, Samboja called on all residents to help collect signatures in his bid to file a petition.
He said the move is aimed at liberating the people from "the suppression occasioned by KWS", and to make sure the county gets a share of the revenue collected from the expansive national park.
"It's high time this county benefits from Tsavo West National Park. It is very sad seeing that over 62 per cent of our county is in the National Park and yet we get nothing from it," Governor Samboja said.
[The park occupies 9,065 square kilometres of the county's 17,084, which is about 53 per cent.]
He said residents have continually suffered from the conflict despite the government earning billions from the park. No revenue is remitted to the county, he said.
Most parts of the county have experienced perennial human-wildlife conflict resulting in deaths, destruction of property and injuries.
Samboja’s call is expected to rekindle pressure by county legislators to have Tsavo National Park handed over to the county government.
Earlier this year, Voi MP Jones Mlolwa said the community will only support the referendum if Tsavo National Park is handed over to the county.
“We want this national park converted to a game reserve so that we can get full control. Our people need to see the benefits of protecting wildlife.” Mlolwa said.
Sagalla MCA Godwin Kilele said it is sad that Turkana county is given 25 per cent [actually about five per cent] of the proceeds from the oil sold while Taita Taveta gets nothing from the vast land occupied by Tsavo National Park.
[However, in May 2018 negotiations between the county and the national government, Governor Josphat Nanok said they agreed on five per cent for the host community, down from 7.5 per cent they were demanding].
"As a county, let’s not run after Mama Mbogas to get revenue, Let’s demand our royalties from KWS. It is our right, it is enough to bring change to our people," Kilele said.
He blamed KWS for delayed compensation for victims of human-wildlife conflict, further noting that hundreds of farmers are suffering in hunger due to the destruction of crops by rogue jumbos.
"Our people suffer a lot from constant conflicts with the wildlife and they are not compensated. We will not tolerate this," Kilele said.
KWS has compensated only 10 death cases out of 23 reported between 2014 and 2016 in Taita Taveta county for Sh35.6 million. The deaths resulted from wild animals while cases of people who died from snake bites are yet to be compensated.
Statistics from the County Wildlife Compensation and Conservation Committee show there are more than 700 pending cases.
They include 20 deaths, 235 injuries and 452 cases of crop destruction caused by elephants, lions, buffaloes, snake bites and crocodiles.
At least 1,500 compensation claims have been processed since 2014 and are awaiting payments.