State sued over TB-ridden buffalo
SA’s big game breeder Jaco Troskie is suing the government for nearly R500m after officials allegedly knowingly sold him a TB-infected buffalo on a state auction. According to a Times Select report, the Northern Cape businessman claims the seven-year ordeal has wiped him out financially and destroyed his business’s reputation.
Troskie bought the bull in 2011 for R6.9m on a state auction in which 50 buffalo were sold off. Over the next three years he bred it with 25 female buffalo.
Troskie is one of at least three big game breeders suing the state for a total of almost R1bn after they unwittingly bought five TB-infected buffalo at the auction.
He alleges the state vet reports on the condition of the animals were altered to cover up their true health status at the time of the sale. The government has declined to comment on any of the allegations.
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