Light penalty risks sending wrong message in Kariega piggery case

As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. However, in the case of the horrific scenes uncovered at a Kariega piggery in 2023, the photographs tell a story that words alone struggle to capture. The images paint a scene of prolonged suffering and abandonment.

For inspectors and animal welfare workers, it was a sight they say they will never forget. Three years later, the man responsible has finally been convicted. The case dates back to January 2023 when the Animal Anti-Cruelty League (AACL) visited Unathi Mafuya’s Uster Rangers Hill Piggery in Rocklands to inspect the premises.

Veteran AACL inspector Bev Rademeyer said on Monday it was the worst scene of its kind she had encountered. “It was sheer devastation: barren land, empty food bowls, waterless troughs and skeletal pigs, desperately scavenging for food among carcasses and bones.” By the time of their visit, 13 animals had already died. The piggery received infrastructure funding and support from the Eastern Cape economic development, environmental affairs and tourism department.

[paywall]

This raises questions about the quality of oversight of taxpayers’ money. If public funds are used to support farming projects, someone must ensure those projects remain operational.

[/paywall]