Fisher folks at Kwahu Adawso in the Eastern Region are at their wits end and totally frustrated. This is because their nets used for their fishing expeditions have always been empty in recent times as a result of poor catch; a development they have attributed to several causes including the wrath of the gods.
The poor catch some of the fisherfolks believe is as a result of women going contrary to one of the district’s bye-laws that forbids women in their menstruation from going anywhere near the river. They equally believe that the habit of sending black containers including cooking pots into the river, contrary to a directive from the traditional authorities is also to blame for provoking the wrath of the gods which has led to the poor catches in recent times.
The fisherfolks have therefore in an interview with Rite news indicated that the only way to ensure appreciable catch from the river is to pacify the gods since they now face a lot of hardships as a result of the low catch.
Aside the superstition however, frustrated fisherfolks have turned to place the reason for the poor catch squarely at the feet of the farmers that farm along the river banks and subsequently spill chemicals into the river.
The effects of the poor fish harvest, irrespective of the cause according to the fisherfolk are resulting in some of their colleagues deserting the fishing sector.
A fishmonger, Yaa Atta, corroborating the complaints of the fisherfolks confirmed that she and her colleagues have not received enough fish from the fishermen, adding that it affected their work.
Source: ritefmonline.org
