Fishermen decry boat engine thefts
Fishing. UPDF soldiers monitor operations at Lubi Landing Site in Lyabaana Sub-country at the weekend. PHOTO BY YAZID YOLISIGIRA
Buvuma. Fishermen in Lyabaana Sub-county in Buvuma District have raised concerns over the increasing theft of boat engines on Lake Victoria.
While meeting district officials and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) soldiers fighting illegal fishing at Lyabaana Landing Site at the weekend, the fishermen said they have lost more than 18 boat engines to pirates in the past three months.
Mr Ali Malinzi, the chairperson of fishermen, said pirates raid the boats armed with machetes, spears and sticks.
Mr Jimmy Mutyaba, a resident of Lubi Landing Site, one of the fishermen whose engine was seized, said the pirates always move in groups of four.
“They found me near Migingo (Island) and took my engine. I tried to resist but they threatened to plunge me into the water,” Mr Mutyaba said, adding that the pirates crossed into Kenya after the robbery.
The fishermen also said only three engines have been recovered and appealed to authorities to intensify their operations.
They also appealed to government to increase the price of fish from Shs6,500 per kilogramme since fuel prices have also risen.
Capt Steven Alituha, the head of enforcement against illegal fishing in Buvuma, said pirates returned to the lake after getting information that the soldiers had halted operations following complaints of alleged harassment against them.
“Those whose boats are taken always cross to Kenya and Tanzania where pirates get them but we are going to intensify operations against them. But we ask our people to avoid fishing in the distant waters of Tanzania and Kenya,” Capt Alituha said.
On the issue of fish prices, the chairman of the Association of Fishermen and Lake Users in Uganda, Mr Godfrey Senyonga Kambugu, said they petitioned Parliament and are waiting for its response.
The meeting was convened to assess the performance of the UPDF over the one-and-a-half years they have worked on the lake.
Some fishermen commended the UPDF for fighting illegal fishing gear which has resulted in the high quantity of mature fish being caught.
