Police deploy more resources to curb stock theft
Pini Bothoko | Monday March 6, 2023 06:00
This scourge continues to affect farmers and the country’s rural economies and requires concerted efforts to overcome. However, the police have since resolved to deploy more resources to curb the scourge.
Stealing of cattle is causing great misery to farmers in Botswana, especially those in rural communities who largely depend on agriculture for sustenance. Realising that communities are losing livestock to criminals, which is impacting negatively on their livelihoods, the police resolved to enhance the participation of community structures in the fight against stock theft.
The police made the resolution at the recent 49th Botswana Police Senior Officers’ Annual Conference held at Special Support Group (SSG) Band Wing Hall, Gaborone. They resolved to deploy more resources to curb stock theft both inland and along the common borders.
The police have also revealed plans to enhance inter-agency collaboration and cross-border cooperation in stock theft investigations and intensify sharing of information and intelligence. Addressing the conference, the Minister of Defence and Security, Kagiso Mmusi expressed concern over escalating cases of stock theft pleading with the police to enforce their patrols along the border to fight the scourge.
Mmusi revealed to have received specialised vehicles for border patrols as farmers are becoming poorer. Sharing similar sentiments, the Acting Police Commissioner, Phemelo Ramakorwane said the police have taken a decision to strengthen and resource anti-stock theft teams across the country to facilitate effective tackling of the recurring challenge.
The rearing of livestock has and will always be an integral part of the life of a Motswana and major contributor to the economy as every household keeps cattle, goats or sheep in a subsistence form or commercially. Stock theft is becoming a bane to pastoralists who either rear cattle or small stock. The scourge is currently rampant countrywide as zero-tooth animals are being targeted mostly by organised criminal syndicates. The calves commonly known as zero-tooth are in high demand in the market hence being the targets for cattle rustlers.
This rampant stock theft is keeping law enforcement officers on their toes as they arrest suspects and confiscate stolen livestock, which is an indication that stock theft might be a paying job for perpetrators. The police have since established that the cattle rustlers have kraals in the bushes in the outskirts where they brand and keep the stolen beasts before selling them either to the Botswana Meat Commission or local butcheries.
Kweneng, Southern, Boteti districts, Palapye and surrounding areas are the most prevalent areas dispirited by the upsurge in stock theft as the police continue to arrest suspects in possession of stolen cattle and carcasses. The rampant stock theft in these areas is said to be difficult to contain and remains one of the greatest threats to the long-term sustainability of livestock production and farming.
The police have worriedly observed that stock thieves hang around grazing areas to rustle unbranded cattle, which are their chief target. Moreover, the rampant cross-border livestock theft along Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe remains the country’s nightmare something that has over the years resulted in the police increasing their base camps along the border consequently enhancing police visibility. For years the issue of cross-border cattle rustling, where stolen cattle and livestock from Botswana are smuggled into neighbouring South Africa and Zimbabwe has been a concern for both countries. This issue is topical in the sense that it affects communities on both sides of the border.
However, through Kgomo-khumo anti-stock theft operation, the police aim to bring back Batswana’s confidence in farming through cracking down on livestock theft after realising that most farmers had given up altogether on cattle rearing. The police’s efforts continue to fall into deaf ears as criminals continue to find their way into people’s kraals, pounce on cattle when they are out for grazing and rustle unbranded cattle.
Even the hope of addressing Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) between these nations remain a fallacy because thieves destroy the fence leaving it open for livestock to cross with ease. As a result farmers, through farmers committees, have been encouraged to form neighbourhood watch committees and help the police to curb the scourge through teamwork.