An online petition seeking to halt the Kano State government from relocating the city’s only zoological and botanical garden to outskirts of the state is gaining more endorsements.
The petition, which was initiated by a biodiversity conservationist and lecturer at the Federal University Dutse, Abubakar S. Ringim, is asking the government to reconsider the plan in the interest of the people of the state, students, the environment and urban diversity.
“People should not have to leave the city or travel long distances to experience nature, which probably informed its siting in the first place,” the varsity lecturer argued in the petition.
“Elsewhere, governments have focused their attention on educating the public on current environmental and conservation issues happening at the global level. Why destroy Kano Zoo, a heritage laid down for nearly half a century? In fact, the government should have focused on other environmental issues in the state, such as unplanned development activities, environmental pollution around Challawa, and logging of forests,” he said.
The petition, which is trending on a community petitions website, AVAAZ.org, with the title, “A Vote Against Relocation of Kano Zoo and Botanical Garden” had already garnered about 130 signatures at the time of filing this report.
Other major campaigns trending on the site include, ‘Share the Vaccine with the World’, ‘EU: Ban Forest-killing Products’, ‘Don’t Let the Amazon Burn’, among others.
The Kano State government Friday made its intention public to relocate the zoo to Tiga, about 91 kilometers from the city, sparking a barrage of criticisms from animal lovers, conservationists, residents and the opposition.
Justifying its decision, the government said the zoo was now surrounded by “human population” and that most of the animals “don’t like noise.”
