By Maria Tembo

Ntchisi, October 26, Mana: Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve has expressed worry over wildlife crimes that are on the increase in Ntchisi.

Community Development Manager for Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve, Timothy Maseko Chana, made the remarks on Friday during a sensitization campaign at Muuta Primary School Ground in the area of Senior Chief Nthondo in the district.

Chana said it is disheartening that wildlife crimes continue to rise regardless of different interventions to curb the malpractice.

He cited illegal charcoal burning where 44 sites were found in the game reserve of which 36 are from Ntchisi district representing 81 percent.

“The statistics show that Ntchisi is number one among Kasungu and Nkhotakota in terms of wildlife crimes and this is very worrisome. We are hoping that with the sensitization meetings we are conducting such cases will decrease,” he said.

Second Grade Magistrate Frederick Malovu advised people in the district to avoid engaging in such malpractices saying that once found the law will take its course.

“There are new penalties for wildlife crimes and as such, we are hoping that the district’s court will not be receiving many wildlife crime cases as stiffer sentences will be given to the offenders to serve as a warning to would-be offenders,” Malovu explained.

In his remarks, Senior Chief Nthondo said almost 500 hectares of Nkhotakota game reserve in the district have been destroyed through illegal charcoal burning and said he will continue working with Group Village Headmen surrounding the game reserve in order to continue sensitizing the general public as well as bringing to book perpetrators of wildlife crimes.

“We have seen that most of these people that are engaging in charcoal burning are not from Ntchisi but Lilongwe and we are only waiting for funding from African Parks and Nkhotakota Wildlife Association. Once everything is done we are going into the forest and arrest those that will be found there,” he said.

Ntchisi North East legislator Olipa Chimangeni thanked the organization and its partners for the sensitization campaign and asked her constituents to be at the forefront in reporting the perpetrators of the wildlife crimes.