Hundreds of Lamu fishermen over the weekend took to the streets to protest against the grabbing of their only fish landing site.
A private developer is already undertaking the construction of a parameter wall surrounding the fish landing site situated in the Lamu KenGen area.
The more than one-acre site has for the past 20 years been in use by the Lamu fishermen for parking boats, dhows and disposing of their catch.
The fishers carried placards with messages ‘Haki Yetu’, ‘Dhulma ya Ardhi Yetu Tumeichoka’ and ‘Serikali Saidia Tupate Haki Yetu ya Ardhi’.
They moved around the streets while singing and dancing before finalising their demonstration in front of the grabbed fish landing site, where they addressed the media.
Lamu Beach Management Units chair Abubakar Twalib expressed disappointment following the private investor’s move to fence the site and bar them from accessing and using the landing site.
“Everybody knows this is a public utility. How come that today, someone claims to be owning it?” he said.
“For over 20 years, we’ve used this particular land to park boats, offload fish consignments and as a resting place for us fishermen. We even grew up seeing our parents already using the landing site.”
He appealed to the national and county governments to intervene and help them repossess the landing site.
Vae Bunu, a veteran fisherman in Lamu Town, said the KenGen fish landing site is the only one remaining for the Lamu Island fishermen after the rest were grabbed by tycoons.
“These tycoons move around grabbing every fish landing site they come across,” he said.
Vunu cited Ras Kitau, Mokowe and Tenewi fish landing sites, saying the one in Lamu Town is the latest.
“They have even fenced and barred us from using the site we inherited from our forefathers who were also fishermen,” he said.
Furaha Kitsao, another fisherman, pleaded with the devolved government to coordinate with the National Land Commission to have all fish landing sites in Lamu issued with title deeds.
Kitsao reiterated that the issuing of title deeds is the only sure bet to have the fish landing sites fully protected and respected.
He said they will soon have to close down the trade if all landing sites fall into the hands of grabbers and private developers.
“The issuance of title deeds to fish landing sites should be done urgently or else, we won’t have any other place to conduct our daily activities as fishers,” Kitsao said.
Recently, the Lamu government announced it has repossessed 70 title deeds belonging to grabbed public utility lands in the county, among them Mokowe and Kiunga fish landing sites.