Fishermen in Sierra Leonw have aused media practitioners as misleading and a way to spoil their market. They seem to forget the present hard economic situation people have to cope with to make ends meet.
I have been a fisherman for over 40 years and have never heard of dead fish floating to land. Some people are giving out misleading information, he fumed.
Kargbo furthered that September, February and March is the season to catch jerk fish and this has been so since the colonial era.
Ibrahim Kargbo, added that himself and his colleagues used 44mm fishing nets, which is the required standard by Government to carry out inshore fishing. And, he disclosed that because the catch was huge, the nets got torn as they hauled in the catch.
He confirmed of having a good meal with his family the evening of the catch, and assured the public that the fish is good and fit for human consumption.
Some of the fish traders at Lumley expressed delight over the huge catch, noting that for a long time very little was derived from the trade. They’ve been severely affected by the seaweed and Harmattan problems for fishermen.
The women condemned the fake rumours that the fish were bad and dumped by an international trawler, which might have got the wrong catch.
Lucinda Kargbo, Marketing Officer at the National Tourist Board, confirmed that for the past three years, fishermen have caught more fish during this season.
She described the catch as fishing tourism, and it is the reason why the Board allows fishermen to carryout inshore fishing along the beach. But, the fishermen must make it more attractive and improve how the fish are handled and processed.
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