Clive Mullings to the rescue!
UNITY HALL, St James — West Central St James MP Clive Mullings has appeased the fear of eviction expressed by over 30 fisherfolks who utilise the Rum Bottle Bay fishing beach near the border of St James and Hanover.
In a swift response to an article appearing in a recent Observer West publication, Mullings met early Sunday with the concerned seafarers with news that Jiuseppe Maffessanti, the owner of the beachfront property, had no desire of evciting them.
” He (Maffessanti) was very clear to me that he has nothing against the fishermen that is not it. But he was trying to prevent what was taking place in terms of the disposal of waste here. The fishermen not being clear on what was happening formed the view that they were being evicted.” Mullings explained
The incensed fishers, some of whom have occupied the fishing beach for over 50 years, expressed their fears after turning up one morning to find the entrance to the facility chained and padlocked.
They said they were unable to drive onto the beach and were consequently burdened to transport gallons of petrol from the road to their engine boats on the beach.
Mullings said Maffessanti was attempting to block the path of motorists transporting rubbish to the site.
The fishers are also vehemently opposed to the flagrant dumping of garbage on the beach.
In the meantime Mullings is seeking an early date for a meeting with the fishers, and Maffesanti to hammer out the way forward.
” So we will be arranging a meeting to see how the protocol of going forward to see how we can preserve the beach for the fishermen and to prevent those persons from dumping. For instance there are needles dumped here and so on. Pharmceuticals have been dumped so it seeems like persons have found out about this route and coming here and dumping illegally”.
He added: ” Our fishermen have been here for many years and so there is the situation of a licence being allowed. I don’t speak from any authiority, I haven’t been told that explicitly. But can infer that there has been some licence to utilise the premises. Bearing in mind what is taking place it helps to preserve the mangroves and so on. So I think it is win-win situation. The area does not become overgrown and those who utilise the area to go to fish and so on, keep it clean”.