Geita — THE Commissioner of Operations and Training of the Tanzania Police Force, Mr Awadhi Haji has said incidents of abduction, theft, vandalism, robbery and extortion to fishermen in Lake Victoria have currently declined by more than 80 per cent.

Mr Awadhi made the comment recently in an exclusive interview with journalists in Geita Town Council soon after a special meeting of police officers from the six regions of the Lake Zone.

He said the success was a result of frequent operations carried out by the security organ. According to Mr Haji, strategies put in place to control acts of abduction and vandalism have helped to consolidate peace in Lake Victoria, hence improving the fishing industry.

"In the past years, there were many reported incidents of robbery using a variety of weapons. Sometimes criminals used traditional weapons to commit acts of robbery and vandalism in Lake Victoria.

"Currently, there are few reported incidents as some people still engage in such criminal incidents. However, as law enforcers, we keep on crafting strategies to achieve 100 per cent safety for fishermen," he said.

Chairman of the Tanzania Fishermen's Association, Mr Bakari Madaba admitted that the security situation is currently improving in Lake Victoria, with the only remaining major challenge being illegal fishing.

"All of us have the responsibility to protect public resources .The first beneficiaries of fishery resources are fishermen themselves. We support the operations carried out by the Police Force in protecting fishery resources including educating the fishermen," he said.

Geita District Commissioner, Colnery Magembe admitted that the operations carried out by the Police Force in Lake Victoria have yielded fruits as it has now been rare to hear incidents of abduction in the lake.

"I really congratulate the Police Force, especially after they agreed to cooperate with fishermen and other fishing industry stakeholders to resolve the challenges."