It has been three weeks since the Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company (MIFCO) last paid fishermen for the fish purchased on credit.
The last time MIFCO facilities paid fishermen for their catch was on the 31st of last month, which covered the bills for fish taken from fishermen up until the 27th of that month.
While 21 days have passed from October 28 to today, MIFCO has not paid for the fish purchased during this period. MIFCO has also not disclosed a date when the payments will or can be made. Since MIFCO is not disclosing the statistics of the fish purchased from fishermen, it is unclear how much fish has been taken on credit during this period.
Due to MIFCO's failure to pay for the fish, fishermen have been openly criticizing and expressing their displeasure towards the government and MIFCO on various social media platforms. Despite the fishermen's concerns, the current government is turning a deaf ear to their calls. Fishermen say that President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has forgotten the promises he made to them for votes once he came to power. They also claim that Muizzu's government has destroyed the fishing industry and left fishermen out on the streets.
This government promised fishermen that arrangements would be made to pay them in dollars within at least 48 hours of purchasing the fish. When that failed, the price of fish was reduced to 16 Rufiyaa, claiming it would make it easier to pay the fishermen. However, MIFCO currently releases payments for the fish taken from fishermen on a monthly basis. Fisheries Minister Ahmed Shiyam also lied when he said that fishermen's payments could be settled within two weeks if the price of fish was reduced. Even though two weeks have passed and fishermen are complaining about starving without getting paid, Minister Shiyam is not paying much attention to the matter. Fishermen are now saying that they have no trust in President Muizzu or Minister Shiyam.
Due to the delay in MIFCO's payments for the weighed fish, many vessels are currently not going out to sea as they cannot operate the vessels, cover the vessel's expenses, or get enough diesel to go fishing. Therefore, the amount of fish weighed to MIFCO has now dropped by half. MIFCO stated that they are currently receiving just enough fish to process. Fishermen say that whether the fish is processed or thrown into the sea unused, the company must pay the fishermen for the business transaction made with MIFCO without delay. They also state that since MIFCO is a 100% government-owned company, the government must be responsible for the company's business transactions.
