The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Polokwane has recently received responses on written questions on the status and costs involved regarding the rhinos owned by Polokwane Municipality.
The rhinos were taken to a sanctuary in 2017 for safekeeping while the municipality upgraded its security at the Polokwane Game Reserve. The council resolution was for this to be a temporary relocation, but 5 years later there are still no upgrades conducted at the municipal game reserve.
In the 2018/19 financial year, the municipality budgeted an amount of R1 million for the reinforcement of the perimeter fence. The following years had no budget.
It costs the municipality R59 000 per month to keep the rhinos at the sanctuary, and that amounts to at least R708 000 annually. This does not include additional veterinary costs.
The plan was to eventually reintroduce the animals into a 5-hectare enclosure. The municipality does not have an exact timeframe as to when the rhinos will be returned to the municipal game reserve.
On the 23rd of November 2018, an adult rhino was reported dead at the sanctuary. Unfortunately, the municipality does not have the horns of the dead rhino as they were allegedly taken by poachers. Currently the municipality has 9 rhinos of which 5 are adult rhinos and 4 are calves.
It is clear that the rhinos are not even safe at the sanctuary where residents cannot even view them. We have spoken to stakeholders in wildlife management and the advice is that even if we can safely reintroduce these rhinos at the reserve, safety concerns will still remain.
The DA understands the role eco-tourism could play in boosting the local economy but notes that the game reserve is poorly managed and underutilized.
In the next ordinary council sitting we will recommend that the municipality report on the options available as well as the viability of the rhinos returning to the game reserve, that the municipality urgently find a secure alternative space for the rhinos, and engage the Limpopo Department of Economic Development, Environment and Tourism (LEDET) and other stakeholders to assist in making the game reserve a commercially viable and sustainable project.