Parliamentary Committee upset by lack of information on fish population

Parliamentary Committee on Lands and Agriculture has expressed disappointment at the failure by the Itezhi-tezhi fisheries department to give details on the population of fish in lake Itezhi-tezhi.

Committee Chairperson Request Muntanga says it is disappointing that the fisheries department in Itezhi-tezhi has no slightest idea of the total fish population in lake Itezhi-tezhi.

This was during the submissions to the Parliamentary Lands and Agriculture Committee held at Itezhi-tezhi teachers’ resource centres today.

“This is very serious that the fisheries department is ignorant of the fish population in lake Itezhi-tezhi, how can you even effect a fish ban on fishing if you do not know the number of fish in the lake, we do not know whether we have too much fish or too little in the lake,” said Mr. Muntanga.

Mr. Muntanga said it was more disappointing that the Itezhi-tezhi Council had also failed to approximate the revenue they get from fish levy every day.

He said that failure by government officials in various departments like the Council and fisheries to give correct information to Parliamentary committees will make it difficult for parliament to improve on certain development policies in the country.

“If you fail to give information to the parliamentary committee like this one, how do you expect us improve or make changes to some of these programs? We are asking you as we leave to prepare more information to be submitted to parliament” he said.[quote]

Meanwhile Mr. Muntanga has said that there is a critical need for the fisheries department to know the biomass of the Kapenta which was introduced in lake itezhi-tezhi a few years ago.

He said that information about biomass of the kapenta is important because it will help the fisheries department to control the kapenta population in the lake.

‘Kapenta is said to reproduce very fast, and if you do not know the population how will you know that Lake Itezhi-tezhi is over populated with kapenta.”

He said that it was wrong for the fisheries department to ban fishing of kapenta in lake Itezhi-tezhi even during the fish ban period because kapenta reproduces very fast hence its population must always be checked.

The parliamentary committee on land and agriculture was in Itezhi-tezhi district where they were getting submissions from small scale farmers, fish cooperatives and agriculture and fisheries department.

ZANIS.