Mystery surrounds origins of the buffalo
Goitsemodimo Kaelo | Thursday April 28, 2016 11:16
The ministry announced Tuesday that they have lifted the movement protocol and allowed slaughtering of the cloven-hoofed animals, after the completion of all tests on the buffalo proved negative of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD).
The ministry also said they have completed the inspection and surveillance to ascertain that here is no FMD threat in the zone. Zone 11 covers Kweneng, Kgatleng, Southern and South East.
In an interview with Mmegi, ministry spokesperson Jeffery Pheko said that their investigations could not reveal exactly where the buffalo came from.
“We have investigated, but we could not establish where it came from. It is difficult to tell exactly where the buffalo came from. We have been working with the Department of Wildlife and National Parks but we found nothing,” he said.
Pheko indicated that while the extensive ground and aerial search that ruled out any presence of buffaloes in Zone 11 has been called off, investigations on the origins of the buffalo that was killed continue. He said that a lot of resources were used in the search because they were a lot of false reports from members of the public.
“We called off the search after two weeks. Resources were used to follow false reports, which were a distraction and disappointment. People were being irresponsible.”
The buffalo that was seen at Moreane crush near Kanye, reported a fortnight ago, caused FMD scare in Zone 11, leading to the suspension of beef exports to the European Union and other trading partners and the temporary closure of the Botswana Meat Commission abattoir in Lobatse. The buffalo was killed and its carcass burnt by the police and wildlife officers, after it attacked and injured two men.