MMU clarifies handling of wild boar in varsity library

CYBERJAYA: Responding to the storm of criticism on the way a wild boar which wandered into the university's library was treated, a spokesperson from the Multimedia University Malaysia (MMU) said the animal was not abused.
"First and foremost, the incident was truly unprecedented. Nothing like it has ever happened in MMU.
"All parties involved including MMU's Security Unit, Occupational Safety and Health Unit (OSHE) and the Fire and Rescue Department did their best to handle the situation," he told theSun today.
When pictures of a man stomping on the bloodied and motionless wild boar in the Siti Hasmah Digital Library surfaced on social media, many netizens reacted with outrage against the way the animal was treated.
The spokesperson stressed that MMU does not condone any form of animal cruelty.
"In this case, the university referred the handling of the situation to the relevant authorities. As we have been made to understand, no one involved in the removal of the animal had intended to inflict cruelty of any kind.
"Rather, the injuries the animal had were not inflicted by humans but the glass panel that it broke when it gained entry into the library," he said.
The spokesperson added that the man in the picture who was seen stepping on the animal was an external contractor of the university who handled the removal of the wild boar in order to ensure the safety of students and staff.
"The longer the animal spent in the library, the more aggressive and violent it became, and measures had to be taken to ensure that no one was hurt, especially the students and staff of MMU," he said.
It was learnt that the wild boar succumbed to its injuries during the capturing process
"No one killed the boar. The man was checking (to see) whether it was dead or still alive. The animal had to be inspected to confirm it was dead.
"We cannot touch the animal by hand as it was very aggressive. It is most fortunate that this process was misconstrued and taken out of context," he said.
During a visit to the library by theSun, staff were seen cleaning up the place. The premises is still partially closed.
In the 1.30pm incident on Monday, the wild boar was believed to have rammed through the glass door at the back of the library and dashed in before screaming students and staff.