'We've undiluted confidence in Sherry Ayittey' - GNCFC

Accra, April 23, GNA - The Ghana National Canoe Fishermen Council (GNCFC), has pledged its 'undiluted confidence' in Madam Hanny Sherry Ayittey, Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development.

At a Press Conference in Accra addressed by Nii Abeo Kyerekuandah the Fourth, Executive Secretary of the Council, members condemned the recent demonstration by a group of persons claiming to be fishermen from the Central and Western Regions, calling for the removal of Madam Ayittey because she had dared to re-constitute the National Premix Committee.

They contended that within the short period Madam Ayittey had been in office, 'she has convinced us that she has the vision, the moral courage, the dedication and commitment to lead us through the crisis the industry is facing now and bring it up from the doldrums below.'

Members, therefore, encouraged the Minister to remain resolute, firm and unperturbed, and carry on with her work with the foresight and diligence she had exhibited so far.

They alleged that the Premix under the supervision of the dissolved Committee was 'brutally mismanaged and abused, opening the way for some committee members to amass considerable wealth.'

'We demand that a full scale inquiry be made into the issue and the culprits, if any, appropriately dealt with.'

On the Fisheries Laws, members of the GNCFC called for their rigid enforcement, to help protect the future of artisanal fishery.

They urged the Law Enforcement Agencies to go all out to enforce the regulations, and pledged the Council's unflinching support to ensure effective enforcement.

'We are calling for blanket enforcement against all the bad and unacceptable fishing practices mentioned in the Act, namely, pair trawling, light fishing, use of under-size mesh nets, use of mono-filament or rubber nets in marine fishing, use of dynamite and harmful chemicals in fishing.

'We are of the firm conviction that it is only when this is done that the fishing industry will be rejuvenated and preserved to provide sustainable employment for our fishermen and others.'

They pointed out that apart from a few misguided, spineless, greedy and selfish canoe fishermen, majority of those who were kicking against the enforcement of the Fisheries Regulations, were in the fishing business not as a vocation, but as something extra they were doing to make money.

The members said these were people who stood to lose nothing if the nation's marine resources were ravaged or plundered and the sea was rendered barren.

'They will not suffer because they are already well secured in their regular jobs and businesses.'

On the rise in the prices of fishing inputs, members said the continuous escalation of prices of the inputs had become a matter of grave concern to canoe fishermen.

They cited as an example that the price of a 40HP outboard motor which a year and a half ago sold at 4,900 Ghana Cedis, was now selling at 9,700 Ghana Cedis, an increase of almost 100 per cent.

Members condemned the 'reckless illegal sale of beach lands by o some unscrupulous chiefs in recent times, to all manner of people, thereby narrowing the operational area for fishing activities, impacting negatively on the future of the industry. GNA