Kitgum leaders petition Museveni over stray elephants

Leaders in Kitgum District have petitioned President Museveni on the need for a sustainable solution to the destruction caused by marauding elephants in the area.

 The district chairperson Christopher Obol Arwai said several herds of elephants from Kidepo Valley National Park had increasingly been straying into the community and destroying several acreages of garden crops.

 He added: “For the last four years since 2020 to date, the frequency of animal invasion from Kidepo National Game Park in Karenga District into the different sub-Counties in Kitgum has increased. Several herds of elephants are invading our areas.’’
 The affected sub-counties include Orom East, Orom, Namukora North, Omiya West and Mucwini. 

 He noted that they are also demanding compensation for the affected households and a permanent solution to the problem through President Museveni.

 ‘’Your Excellency, we want to request that you plan for compensation of the affected households so that the looming hunger can be avoided and this should also usher in a sustainable solution to the problem of animal invasions in these areas,’’Mr Arwai said.
He made the appeal during the thanksgiving ceremony for Kitgum Woman MP Lillian Aber on her appointment as State minister for Refugees and Disaster Preparedness  at Kitgum District Farm Institute Grounds. President Museveni was the chief guest at the function that took place last Saturday. 

 The State minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Henry Oryem Okello, who also attended the ceremony, said: “Your Excellency, this is a very serious issue, we have no right to touch these elephants. We need to produce food to change our diets, but these elephants come here and destroy the very crops that our people have grown, but we just watch them. People beat sufarias (saucepans, beat debes (containers), beat jerrycans to chase them but these elephants are so accustomed to these methods of deterrence and still keep destroying people’s gardens.” 

In response, President Museveni directed the Ministry of Tourism to erect an electric fence around Kidepo Valley National Park as it was done in Murchison Falls National Park to avert destruction by stray elephants.

 The President said: “I will direct that the Ministry of Tourism come here, they should put a fence, an electric fence to stop those elephants from coming.’’
Wild animals  frequently stray from national  parks in search of water and pastures during the dry season.