Elephants may cause voter apathy – Taveta residents

As the country gears up for the August 8 General Election, a section of Taita Taveta County residents have expressed fears that the voting process could be derailed because of the increasing human-wildlife conflict.

According to residents of Mackinnon Road area at the boarder of Taita Taveta and Kwale counties, the constant attacks by stray elephants from the bordering Tsavo East National Park will cause voter apathy among the electorates who fear for their lives.

They are now calling upon the government in conjunction with the Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) to intervene and save the situation by providing a lasting solution.

“We, the people of Dokata, Msufi, Nyamalani and Bahakwenu, have very many rogue elephants destroying our food crops, water points. We want KWS to intervene and solve the problem,” lamented one of the residents.

This happens even after Mwatate residents in the same county are a happy lot after the KWS started installing electrical fence around the national park, to solve the human-wildlife conflict that has been a perennial problem to them for decades.