County back the presence of Coast Guards at Lake Naivasha

KCGS Director-General Brigadier (Rtd) Vincent Naisho (right) with members of Lake Naivasha Beach Management Units. [Antony Gitonga, Standard]

Nakuru County Government and fishermen around Lake Naivasha have thrown their weight behind the Kenya Coast Guard Service (KCGS) amid calls to recall the security outfit.

They noted that since the security team was introduced in the lake, cases of illegal fishing had dropped while fish catch had risen by 80 per cent.

This comes a couple of weeks after security officers shot dead a fish trader in the lake, sparking violent demonstrations and calls to withdraw their services.

According to Governor Lee Kinyanjui, the main aim of introducing KCGS was to address the runaway cases of illegal fishing in the lake.

He noted that the officers had managed to address this leading to a rise in fish catch.

“The Coast guard officers have the backing of the national government and we support their operations which are meant to address cases of illegal fishing,” he said.

Addressing the fishermen during a consultative meeting, Kinyanjui noted that the previous cases of annual fish ban had ended due to an increase in fish catch.

He announced plans to train fishermen and coxswains on safety in a bid to address the rising cases of drowning in the lake.

“Starting end of this month, we shall renew all the licences across the lake and increase the number of fishermen by licensing 80 more new boats,” he said.

Naivasha Deputy County Commissioner Mutua Kisilu regretted the two deaths in the lake which had been caused by the Coast guard.

Lakeview MCA Simon Wanyoike called on the county government to ensure that fishermen from the lake are the first to benefit from the fish market along the Nairobi-Nakuru highway.

“We are calling on the county to address the issue of corridors leading to the lake,” he said.