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Reports reaching the desk of The Eastern Updates have it that animals at the Imo zoo were over the weekend relocated to an unknown destination.
Before the relocation, there are speculations that the zoo would be converted to an estate.
Our correspondent gathered that a truck and trapping equipment was brought to the wild life centre located on Nekede road, Owerri, at about 2pm to convey the animals to their new homes.
The Acting Manager of the zoo, Nkiru Onyeagocha, was seen supervising the trapping of the animals at the zoo with heavy police presence.
When contacted for her reaction to the , relocation, Onyeagocha said she can’t speak on the matter. She rather referred our correspondent to the Commissioner for Tourism.
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Meanwhile, staff of the zoo who were not happy about the development, protested against their ten-month salaries allegedly owed to them by the state government.
The angry staff, despite the heavy police presence, made effort to prevent the relocation of the animals.
It was gathered that those relocating the animals came from Jos Zoological Garden.
The Eastern Updates reports that no fewer than 250 animals in the Imo State Zoological Garden and Wildlife Park have reportedly died from starvation.
According to an inside source from the park located at Nekede, Owerri West council area of the State who refused to reveal his identity, the animals died as a result of neglect.
The source put the loss of the animals to worth N38 million but he did not disclose in detail if 3 lions in the zoo were affected. ‘We have 3 lions in the zoo including other species of wild animals but I can’t tell you if the lions are among the dead ones but certainly, the remaining animals are almost dying due to hunger.’ The source said.
The Eastern Updates gathered that it cost the wildlife park an average of N1.2 million to feed about 500 animals in a month with subvention coming from the State government, but had since stopped according to the source.
