Shafie
KOTA KINABALU: Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Mohd Shafie Hj Apdal has ordered fresh initiatives to stop the Bornean elephant deaths.
He said these initiatives should include an all-out effort by all the relevant agencies to work together with people living in human-elephant conflict zones by way of educating them in tackling problems of elephant intrusion in villages, farms and plantations.
“I have ordered two state ministers – Tourism, Culture, Environment Minister Christina Liew and Agriculture and Food Industry Junz Wong – to hold special meetings with plantation owners in known elephant habitats so they can engage their workers to help with the fight against poaching and killing in their areas,” said the Chief Minister who is deeply disturbed by the sudden spike of Bornean elephant deaths in Sabah.
“It’s time for all Sabahans to be collectively responsible for the protection of our endangered Bornean elephants before we wake up one day and suddenly realise that we have irretrievably lost a precious gift that Mother Nature bestowed on us,” he said in a statement yesterday after the reported death of another elephant.
The cow elephant aged between 12 and 15 years was found dead with a gunshot wound in the head in the Bintang Emas oil palm plantation in Tongod on Saturday.
On Wednesday, Sabah Wildlife director Augustine Tuuga revealed that 25 Borneo pygmy elephants were found dead this year, either shot or snared in traps in jungles and plantations in the state.
Shafie said plantation workers have shown that they are responsible when they have reported unusual activities like stray baby elephants or snared elephants.
“As people who are constantly on the ground, they would be the most effective in rooting out these criminal elements that seek to gain from illegal activities,” he said.
He added plantation owners and farmers should also make the effort to remove snare traps placed in their areas by hunters.
“Elephants in Sabah are totally protected by the law. It is a crime to hurt or kill them. Enforcement agencies cannot cover the ground that is needed to expose these criminal elements in our society. I hope that the people of Sabah will be vigilant and lend their eyes and ears to the protection of elephants in Sabah.
“At the same time, I understand the plight of our farmers and planters as they have to protect their land against wildlife foraging in their farms.
“While they have every right to protect their farmland from intruders, including wild animals, they have no right to kill these assets of ours,” he pointed out.
According to the Chief Minister, the human-wildlife conflict cannot be an excuse to kill, snare or poison these animals that are fully protected under the law as the state government wants to ensure that these animals are conserved so we and future generations can continue to enjoy Bornean elephants in the wild.
Shafie has also directed the Sabah Wildlife Department to make their Hotline number available to those living in the human-elephant conflict zones to enable quicker action to stop possible conflicts.
“I am aware of the need for forest corridors to link fragmented forests in the east coast Sabah. I hope we can fast track it through the help of NGOs because the state government is ready to facilitate.
“I do not want to point fingers but let us be responsible citizens and help in whichever way possible to ensure the elephant population survives,” he said.
He added it was shocking and stunning to read in media reports that 25 elephants had died within eight months this year.
“I am gravely concerned with these deaths as this is an iconic animal of Sabah, and we have to use everything in our power to put an end to this senseless deaths broadly blamed under human-elephant conflict,” he said.
Shafie said whether it is the orang utan or the proboscis, the elephants are also part of our rich wildlife heritage that we must preserve for generations to come. It is an important tourism revenue earner with huge economic spin-offs for rural Sabah. Sadly, the wildlife in particular the Bornean pygmy elephant is dwindling at a rapid pace if the deaths this year alone are an indication of things to come.
“I am told that there are a mere 1,500 to 2,500 elephants left in the wild and this is worrying to all of us as they could go extinct in a few decades.
“This effort to conserve cannot be left in the hands of the government and NGOs, the people –farmers, villagers, and plantation owners and their workers – have to cooperate in the fight against the problem with wildlife poaching,” he stressed.
The Chief Minister ended his statement by calling on all Sabahans who are the custodians of these gentle giants to carry out their civic duty to report any criminal activities that threaten the elephants.