Some fishermen along the Volta Lake, who are also members and executives of Ghana Private Lake Transport Union (GPTU) and National Inland Canoe Fishermen council have called on the government to address the challenges they face in accessing pre mix fuel.

According to the fishermen, inland fishermen have for the past three years been denied of frequent supplies of Premix fuel for their operations.

The Chief Advisor to the Union, Mr. Daduga Tsitodze said the fisher folks have to form long queues each day or travel miles in search of Premix fuel to run their businesses.

He said before the distribution of the fuel in 2009, the government made some arrangements with the union to supply the premix frequently to the various fishing communities around the Volta Lake.

"But at the moment we are facing Premix fuel shortage which at times hinders the smooth operations of our members," he said.

They, however, blamed the situation on the chairman of Ghana Premix Committee, Mr. Kwedu Nicole.

According to the group, Mr. Nicole has defied previous arrangements for the supply of the commodity to them.

He stated that government at the initial stage urged them to form committees and landing beaches at major market centres for easy supply of fuel, which they did.

The Chief advisor noted that eight major markets -namely Buipe, Makango, Yeji, Kejeji/Krachi, Dambai, Tepa Abotoase, Kando Torkor and Dzemeni were selected for the landing beaches.

He added that during the first year, supply was frequent but for no reason, supply began to dwindle mainly due to the changes of the initial arrangements by the chairman.

He emphasized that individual lives and businesses depend on the Premix fuel, since there are no access roads to the various communities, except the lake.

"Premix is like blood in our life because without it the canoes cannot move, to send our children to school and people cannot also travel across the lake".

Mr. Daduga Tsitodze indicated that the union also contributes to the socio-economic development of the country, and thus need attention from the government.

"We carry foodstuff, fish, passengers and goods across the Volta Lake to major leading Market centers" he noted.

He stated that due to the shortages, they have had to resort to buying the commodity at very expensive prices at the fuel stations, which is increasing their cost of doing business.

He said reports they have received indicate that their counterparts at the coast are having frequent supplies and asked why they have been neglected. "How can we all live in a country where some people get their fair share of the national cake, while others are denied the privilege and ignored."

He indicated that, they have petitioned the government and Premix fuel committee several times but it has not yielded any result, adding "if the government does not charge the chairman immediately then he should choose between the one man and the entire communities around and across the Lake."

The union members also suggested that the government represent on the committee members from both the coast and inland to serve their interest.