Simba vs Pesa: Who will win fight for the jungle?

An aerial view of the Nairobi National Park showing industries and residential houses on the edge of the animal sanctuary

NAIROBI: In a country where tourism is the leading foreign exchange earner, it was reckless to show images of a ranger killing a lion. It does not matter if the lion had escaped from its home or not. A social media image showing our court of arms with two dead lions was really funny.

Musician Roger Whitaker was perhaps right when he pointed out in his song, Make way for man, that the most destructive creature is man and cannot be trusted to keep animals safe. We have desecrated the home of Simba and other wild animals through development - buildings roads, houses and railways.

A highway will pass through the edge of Nairobi National Park and a railway line later. The reasons given for that encroachment are not convincing. Buildings were brought down to build the Thika Superhighway. Why can’t the same be done for the SGR and Southern bypass? The biggest risk with encroaching on the national park is that we set precedence.

It reminds me of children left by their mother with a loaf of bread. Unable to wait, they start eating the loaf, piece by piece. Eventually, they eat it all and inform the mother that it was eaten by rats. Once a piece of national park has been taken, it becomes easier to take more.

As a matter of curiosity, how come only lions, not buffaloes or even smaller animals like jackals, seem to escape from the national park? The truth is that Simba and other animals are competing with pesa, for that is what development is all about. Who will win?

Kenya was once a forested country until recently. In the early 1990s, the land was hived off and settled. Molo is a case in point and Laikipia near Nyahururu. Mau followed. The rivers started drying up and the new settlers did what they were expected to do, they populated the land, creating more demand for more land. The problem we were trying to solve became worse.

Though politics was responsible for the land clashes in 1992, it was obvious that land was getting crowded and competition for space was fierce.
That competition did not spare urban areas. While in rural areas land was for agriculture and livelihood, in the urban areas it was a source of quick money (pesa) through rent or just speculation.

Rarely admitted is that land clashes drove up urbanisation, as displaced people looked for security. That drove up prices of urban land. High land prices made grabbing very lucrative.

There is no doubt a lot of people salivate on seeing “empty” Nairobi national park. Some even ask why animals co-exist with the crowded Kibra. By the way, where is Nairobi Dam?

The truth is that Simba has the same rights to this planet as us. The hallmark of any civilised society is not skyscrapers and other advanced infrastructure like roads. It is how it protects the most vulnerable members of the society, poor, disabled, unemployed and children.

Animals like Simba are more vulnerable than disadvantaged human beings. It is our obligation to protect them. After all, Simba will never get a gun to defend itself, its claws and its big jaws are no match to bullets. Simba can only win the war if we let our rationality work.

Money is tempting. If we can chop off the Nairobi National Park into plots and sell them into the open market, we could make trillions. Who would buy the plots? Not the poor, but those already endowed financially. It therefore makes a lot of economic sense to leave the national parks alone. They are as priceless as the painting of Mona Lisa. Our national parks are so precious that they cannot be priced. Take a game drive in any of them at sunrise or sunset...

Interestingly, the more affluent we become the closer we move to nature.

We shift into leafy suburbs, visit national parks and beaches, play golf on natural grass and keep pets at home, including fish in aquariums. Since we all dream of becoming affluent, it makes sense to preserve nature for ourselves or our progeny.

Victory over Simba is hollow or pyrrhic. As our economy grows, the demand for leisure will grow. Note the growth of gyms in high-rise buildings?
It would be foolhardy if we sacrifice national parks and open spaces for money. Who said we can’t have an Uhuru Park in Githurai?

Remember that we sleep eight hours on average and are awake the rest of time. We need space to relax, exhale and reflect. After all, when all is over, we all die, just like Simba.

Striking a balance between economic and environmental interests is another hallmark of a civilised society. We claim to be one.