By: Catherine Ahiador
Fisher folks at Kpong in the Lower Manya Krobo municipality of the Eastern region are agitating against the poor nature of the Volta Lake which is subsequently leading to the collapse of their businesses.
Fisherfolks along the Kpong fishing harbor have on the Rite FM’s Agric Forum explained that several pleas they have made to the government to address the problem have proved futile.
Madam Mabel Edinam Ataka who is a trader at the Kpong Lake explained that one of the biggest challenges of the traders at Kpong is the collapse of a resourceful bridge leading to the Kpong Lake. According to her, the sight of the collapsing bridge appears like a deathtrap driving customers away from the lake.
She said that prior to the collapse of the bridge, buyers came all the way from Takoradi, Accra, Kumasi, Tamale and Takwa to buy fish from Kpong. Unfortunately, she adds, ‘all these people do not show up again due to the bad nature of the entire lake.’ Another trader at the Kpong Lake, Madam Hamidu Abdul Karim also lamented that she has been at the lake for nearly 10 years now but its current nature is collapsing their shore business.
Comparing the nature of the lake now to previous years, she contends that the nature of the lake now is very unpleasant, adding that it is now covered in aquatic weeds and which results in the fishes fleeing out of reach. This according to her results in fishermen who go to fishing on the Kpong Lake most at times returning with empty boats.
Another agitator, Gadhafi, who is a fisherman, explains to Rite FM that the traders have made several complaints to the assembly but all those complaints had fallen on deaf ears culminating in their move to agitate for the revamping of the Kpong Lake.
Meanwhile responding to the issues, the Municipal Chief Executive of the Lower Manya Krobo municipality, honorable Jacob Akolatse assured that the plight of the fisher folks at the Kpong Lake will begin to change in a positive direction by October 2016. Speaking on Rite FM’s Agric forum with Krobea Asante, hon Akolatse noted that such projects like the renovation of the Kpong Lake are capital intensive.
According to him, there are several processes involved before any monies are released for the project. “I am therefore taking bold steps aimed at solving the problems pertaining to the revamping of the Kpong Lake since this has been a problem to me as well as the fisher folks”. He assured.
Source: ritefmonline.org
