Wildlife attack victims decry delayed payouts
Mr Nyota Mwananyama, a wildlife attack victim from Kwale County, speaks during an interview on October 15, 2018. He said he has not yet been compensated. PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- Families that lost their breadwinners are the most affected and are languishing in poverty.
- A resident said most victims have been unable to receive specialised treatment due to lack of funds.
Victims of wildlife attacks in Mackinnon ward, Kwale County, have decried delayed compensation for lives lost and injuries caused.
Mackinnon MCA Joseph Tsuma Danda said most of the victims have been waiting for compensation for more than five years and have been subjected to more suffering.
"Majority of the victims are suffering because of the long time the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) is taking to compensate them," he said, urging the government to come up with a standard compensation rate.
Mr Danda said that compensation should be done swiftly so that those who are injured in such attacks can get appropriate treatment.
Mr Mwajoto Mwasoko, a resident of Dakta village, which is prone to the attacks, says most victims have been unable to receive specialised treatment due to lack of funds
“Those nursing injuries cannot afford medical costs and yet KWS is holding onto their money,” he said.
INJURED
He says the area has also recorded several deaths due to snake bites.
Ms Njira Ndoro, also from Dakota, narrowly escaped death but lost her daughter after a stray elephant attacked them.
"This is unfair, after losing my daughter and sustaining injuries, I was only given Sh250,000," she noted.
Another victim who is nursing injuries is Mr Nyota Mwananyama, also from Dakota village. He was attacked by a buffalo which left him with leg and hand injuries. He is yet to be compensated.
He was a truck driver but he has since lost his job.
"I was attacked in last August and life has not been the same. I have no job," he said, urging the government to compensate him.
