admin
Leonard Ncube Victoria Falls Reporter
A PLANNED zoo in Victoria Falls should not go ahead because it would be a defilement of the natural habitat, Matabeleland North Provincial Affairs Minister Cain Mathema declared yesterday.
African Albida Tourism (AAT), a local company, plans to set up an $18 million recreational park in Victoria Falls.
AAT has already engaged Black Crystal Consulting to carry out an Environmental Impact Assessment for the Santonga Park, set to be opened to the public in 2017 on an 80-acre piece of land adjacent to the Victoria Falls Safari Lodge.
But yesterday, Cde Mathema told The Chronicle: “We don’t want a zoo.”
Promoters of the project said it would be an education, conservation and entertainment park, which will tell the story of Victoria Falls in an exciting and interactive way.
It is envisaged to create 1,500 direct and indirect jobs as well as boost tourism arrivals by more than 100,000 tourists annually and increase hotel occupancy rate by 40 percent.
But Cde Mathema said neither his office nor the Zanu-PF provincial leadership had been consulted on the project. He said he has only heard about the project in the Press.
“That place is an animal corridor on council land. Any development should be authorised by the council and it hasn’t done so,” the minister said.
“I haven’t been consulted and one wonders how many stakeholders have been consulted. I only saw this in the paper and we don’t want a zoo here. If we needed one, the ministry responsible would have done it. In any case, we have a department of Museums and Monuments which can do that. Yes, we want development, but we can’t defile that natural habitat because that’s a known animal corridor.”
AAT has said it was not planning a zoo, but an educational recreational park.
Victoria Falls Mayor Sifiso Mpofu told The Chronicle that the council treats every business proposal with equal merit and will be guided by the other key players’ input.
“As a local authority, our mandate is development and we treat all proposals brought to us equally. We stick to our position that we would attend to whoever comes but follow every necessary procedure which means that we’ll be guided by the EIA.
“The danger is that people may be caught in-between some interested parties,” he said without elaborating.
The council admits receiving the Santonga Project concept paper in 2007 and approved it as a developmental project proposal, but the EIA which was approved then has expired, hence the need for a new process.
The local authority recently issued a Press statement urging people to desist from speculative debate on the issue.
While council claim the project proposal has been overtaken by events, AAT maintain they have the leeway to proceed with the project basing on the 2007 approval.
Responding to questions sent via email yesterday, AAT chairman Dave Glynn said: “The project was fully approved in 2007 by the Victoria Falls Municipality which is the approval body. The process was all done in its entirety in 2007. We can’t, however, comment on the minister’s views.”
AAT claim they have a 25-year lease for the piece of land while council have said the lease was with the government and has since expired.
Online Reporter