UWP PRESS

CHOISEUL/SALTIBUS UWP CONSTITUENCY BRANCH
REUNION, CHOISEUL
ST.LUCIA, WEST INDIES
CONTACT #758-519-1650/758-584-2977
EMAIL:choiseulsaltibusuwpconstituencybranch@hotmail.com

PRESS RELEASE
FISHERMEN DESERVE SOME RELIEF

THE CHOISEUL/SALTIBUS UWP CONSTITUENCY BRANCH is calling on the District Representative, Hon. Lorne Theophilus and the Minister for Fisheries, Hon. Moses Jn. Baptiste to expeditiously address the desilting of the Choiseul Fisheries Complex pond. The situation is now critical and multi-hazardous with many fishermen suffering substantial damage to their fishing vessels. The pond is practically inaccessible; the stagnant water is a prime breeding ground for harmful vectors; and fish, a essential of a healthy diet has been conspicuously absent from a once thriving market.
We are dumbfounded as to why the excavator which was donated to the Choiseul Fishermen Cooperative and Choiseul Village Council by the Japanese Grassroots Fund almost two years ago to assist in the desilting of the pond still remains parked in the parking lot of our District Representative's Choiseul office. Is there any truth to the rumour that the excavator remains dormant as a result of the failure of our Parliamentary Representative and to a lesser degree the Choiseul Village Council to source a meager $8,000.00 to insure it.
Isn't the livelihood of the Choiseul fishermen sufficiently important to demand the consideration and timely action of our Parliamentary Representative to remedy the situation? Was it not candidate Lorne Theophilus who promised the fishermen of Choiseul a sand sucker to alleviate what is a persistent problem of the silting of the pond?
The protest action of the Choiseul fishermen is evidence of Hon. Lorne Theophilus' failure and inability to manage the affairs of the people of Choiseul/Saltibus. It is also a striking indictment on Hon. Lorne Theophilus' capacity to deliver on and his commitment to lead us to the "Better Days" that he promised not so long ago.
Therefore, we strongly recommended that Hon. Lorne Theophilus immediately focuses on the plight of the Choiseul fishermen to bring deserved relief to them. We understand that these are trying economic times, but sourcing $8,000.00 for the survival of our vital Choiseul fishing industry cannot be 'rocket science especially for a man of Hon. Lorne Theophilus reputed acumen.
Sent from my BlackBerry® device from Digicel