Maltreatment of sea cow cruel, barbaric – National Park Boss
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— Naija_ist_born (@Grantefizy) February 21, 2020
Dr Ibrahim Goni, the Conservator-General, National Park Service, has condemned the maltreatment of a stray Manatee or Sea Cow found in Delta, describing the treatment as cruel and barbaric.
Goni expressed his condemnation in a statement issued by his Media Assistant, Yakubu Zull, in Abuja on Wednesday.
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He said the herbivorous animal otherwise known as Sea Cow, was seen in a trending video being dragged on the ground in a street in Delta by some youths.
The C-G said that the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) had classified the manatee as vulnerable in the Union’s red-list of threatened species in the world.
He said that Nigeria’s Endangered Species Amendment Act of 2016 also prohibits the hurting of such species of animals.
“It is illegal to hunt, capture or trade Manatee in Nigeria; they are endangered species and therefore should be protected as part of our environment.
“The animal was tied and was being dragged hard by some people while it struggled, which was really cruel and barbaric,” he said.
He, however, called on the Delta government to investigate the incident, arrest and prosecute those behind the cruel act.
“They should be punished so that it will serve as a deterrent to others. The amendment act provides for the punishment of any such offender.’’
Goni also called for more awareness campaign in the state and the coastal regions across the nation to educate the people on the need to protect endangered species.
“We need a total reorientation of the general public on the need to respect environmental laws for the good of the environment and humanity.
“Such rare, wild animals are treasured animals and of utmost importance all over the world and special care must be taken to protect them because of their biodiversity and ecological value to Nigeria and the world at large.
“We must all work together to manage our wildlife to ensure that they do not go extinct as a result of over-exploitation.”
The trending video on the threatened West African Manatee being dragged down the street in Delta by some youths sparked reactions from environmentalists
Ikeazor, who described the video as distressing and distasteful stated in her Twitter handle, @sharon Ikeazor:
“The Ministry of Environment will increase efforts in wildlife conservation and working with relevant national, state agencies and conservationist, especially in coastal regions to protect and conserve endangered marine species and their habitat.”
