The Jos lion: killed

Lara Owoeye-Wise

Yesterday when the news broke that a lion had escaped from the Jos zoo, my colleagues and I knew this was bound to happen. As a matter of fact, Gbenga Aruleba was so specific when he said “go and mark my words, they will kill it, instead of using a tranquilliser, they will use bullets”.

Alas! This, I’m told is the remains of the escapee lion (see photo). I don’t know what happened but it was killed… And I’m sad. The lion, I’m told, was ‘born’ in 1972, much older than a lot of my friends. It was one of our beauty and wildlife pride.

I don’t know what transpired, but I don’t think it would have been a bad idea if it was demobilised, recaptured and re-caged. You know, abroad, this animal would have been brought back ‘home’ with much dignity and pride. It would have made headline news as its trail and recapture would have been televised on live TV.

This brings me to the question of how equipped our Zoos are for emergencies and ugly incidents like this one.

I still think this lion, 43 years old,  should not have been killed. I don’t know if animals rest in peace but I can bet that even in death, this lion must have been a bit disappointed. It is sad.