MAUN ÔÇôLake Ngami fishermen who were driven away from catching fish last year are said to have given up on upholding the law and continue to throng the lake in numbers to engage in illegal fishing.
This week the police said that a batch of more than 3000 fish which they confiscated with assistance from officials of Department of Wildlife and National Parks at Lake Ngami will be destroyed by burning.
Superintendent John Kelebeng of Maun Police said depending on a court order after the appearance of the four suspects who were apprehended by the police at the lake on Friday evening, there is a high possibility that the fish might be burned and not sold by public auction as it has been the case in the past. He said the decision to burn instead of selling is usually meant to discourage poachers from stealing fish at the lake as it is currently a prohibited area for fishing.
He stated that on the afternoon of 6th May 2016, three men aged 34, 38 and 39 were arrested at the Lake after they were found in possession of 2246 fish. Still on the same day, but this time in the evening, another man from Etsha was arrested at the other side of the lake with a total of 1745 fish which he could not account for when questioned by the police. The four suspects were charged P500 each and are expected to appear in court this week. He noted that fishing at the lake has become rampant, adding however that the police and other law enforcement organs have intensified their daily patrols of the area.
In another incident, Kelebeng said they are investigating a case in which a four year old boy who has since February been staying with his mother’s cousin at Kgwebe cattle post was found with multiple wounds. He said the suspected woman had requested that the mother let her stay with the boy as she was all by herself at the cattle post and therefore lonely. The unsuspecting mother is said to have consented to the request which she is now regretting.
“The suspect could not respond the mother when she demanded to know why the young boy was in such a terrible state. Instead she said the wounds just surfaced, and as such she decided to bring the child back to its mother. The boy has since April been admitted at Letsholathebe Memorial Hospital and was discharged last week. Doctors suspect his bruised body was burnt as had severe wounds on the neck and waist while the entire body is also still swollen”, said Kelebeng.
