Crossover culture

“Mister minister please tell us what is going on,” Ali said.

“The nation has been told that the fish is not good to eat and sir you have said nothing thus far.” Yesterday, Ali and other fishermen hosted a press conference at the Cedros Community Centre to highlight their concerns.

This press conference comes on the heels of several other media briefings in the Otaheite, Orange Valley and other areas as fishermen continue to speak openly on the issues now affecting them as there have been reports of a drastic decrease in fish sales.

“We are fed up and frustrated and this is not only the fishermen in Cedros, it is all over the country mister minister. We have families to feed, children to send to school and you have said nothing sir,” Ali lamented.

He said that fishermen’s livelihoods were destroyed when secretary of Fishermen and Friends of the Sea (FFOS) Gary Aboud told the nation that the fish in the ocean was not good for consumption.

“Gary Aboud has taken away the bread and butter of the fishermen of this country and all those involved in the fishing industry.

This is a national issue and the minister is silent why ? We demand answers. You are the Minister of Agriculture and you must tell us what is going on.

Let the nation know he truth,” Ali said.

He further lamented that Aboud is also claiming that tests conducted have shown that the fishes are not good for consumption.

“How do we even know these tests are credible and have not been tampered with? What proof do you have Mister Aboud and what is your motive behind destroying the livelihood of fishermen?” He further noted that he strongly believes that Aboud has an ulterior motive behind his “so-called claims”.

“He wanted to scare the nation and he got exactly what he wanted.

He told people if they consume the fish they would become sick and now no one, absolutely no one, is buying fish. If the fish was poisonous do you think there would have not been dead fishes washing ashore all over the country?” Aboud argues that State-owned oil company Petrotrin is responsible since the company used oil dispersant Corexit in 2013 to clean up a massive oil spill in La Brea. Aboud said certain species of fish are not fit for consumption.

Efforts to contact Rambharat proved futile as calls to his cell phone went unanswered.