A lion that escaped from the Wildlife Park in Jos, Nigeria in the early hours of Wednesday, December 02 has been killed.  The lion was allegedly killed by troops of the Joint Task Force (Operation Safe Haven) stationed in Jos.  According to the acting General Manger of the Plateau Tourism Cooperation, John Doy, the lion had been caged since 1972 before it slipped through the gate of the cage when it was opened for its routine feeding.

It was reported that all efforts by the operation team to recapture the lion alive failed due to its aggressiveness and it was eventually shot dead to prevent human casualty.  This is highly intriguing.

Killing this lion was uncalled for.  It could have been simply immobilised, captured and returned to the Wildlife Park.  Sincerely, this would have been at a lower cost to the country.  Doesn't the park have the facilities to handle basic animal capture operations like this?  Why?  That no provisions has ever been made for such in the past or that it has been diverted as usual? If security threat was the real reason for killing the lion, where is the remains?  Shared for consumption immediately after? The remains could have been preserved for posterity. 

This is a criminal offence, an extrajudicial killing of sort.  Nigerian Military must be made to respect lives, be it humans or wild animals.

The circumstances surrounding the purported escape and the eventual killing of the lion deserves full-blown investigations and appropriate actions afterwards.  Having survived under ex-situ situations for 43 years largely on taxpayers' funds, this lion is a national treasure.