Anambra: Traders blame insecurity, cost of transportation for hike in prices of foodstuff
By Cajetan Mmuta, Awka
Thousands of traders drawn from across various markets in the commercial town of Onitsha in Anambra State on Thursday attributed insecurity and outrageous rise in transport fares as reasons for the high cost of food items across the country.
The traders reeled out the sad experiences bedeviling the nation during the fact-finding mission on the steady rise of food items in the markets by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) held at the Ose Okwodu market in Onitsha North local government council of the state.
Chairman of Ose Okwodu Market, Chief Ikechukwu Umuanozie, represented by the Market Secretary Hon. Onyejikwe Cyprian said that except the twin problems of insecurity and cost of transportation are drastically reduced, the cost of foodstuff in Nigeria would continue to remain high.
He urged the federal and state governments to adequately look into the issues of rising insecurity and hike transport fares for food items to be affordable for all in the country.
According to him, farmers are no longer going to farms because of insecurity and the dealers too are being robbed often by criminals while in transit.
He said, “For us to have reduced the cost of foodstuff, the farmers must be allowed to go into farmland and farm. How can someone go into a farm and be killed or kidnapped and you want others to go there? Many people are afraid of going to farmland for their safety. Apart from the farmers, traders get attacked on the roads and a lot of us are afraid of travelling out to buy goods.”
The market leader expressed worry that before now people used to get a loan to carry out their farm work, but today even if the loans are given, where can the person farm?
He said that before now, the cost of fueling vehicles was cheap but today it takes a fortune to fuel vehicles and the transporters will charge higher and we have to add the cost to the goods.
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“A litre of fuel is N850 today while a litre of gas is N1500. The lorry driver will put the cost in carrying our goods. Goods ordinarily that cost N2 million to convey to Onitsha are now about NN20 million. Invariably, when fuel gets higher, goods will be higher” he said.
The Zonal coordinator of FCCPC, Mr Jude Obiora Akolam who spoke on his mission to the market said the federal government has sent them on a fact-finding mission to find out why the cost of food items is on the rise.
He said that, after the finding, the commission would advise the government appropriately on how to check the menace of a hike in foodstuff.
He said the findings will assist the government in planning for the people, noting that without the finding out, it might be difficult to plan for populace.
He called on the government to intervene to address the issue of insecurity to enable farmers to farm and reduce the hardships on the land.
He stated that people are suffering and finding it extremely difficult to feed their families.
In his reaction, Mr Celestine Udealo who deals in grains said that apart from that insecurity and cost of transportation, climate change also poses a serious threat to food production.
He said before now, farmers paid N6000 at any produce checkpoint but today they are paying N30,000 at a checkpoint.
He said that they get their goods from Borno state, Taraba, Benue,kebbi states but today they hardly get good stuff because of the insecurity and cost of transportation.
He said that climate change has also caused problems because all the okra and potatoes planted by those around the Anambra riverine areas could not survive because of climate change.
According to him, before now those foodstuff took care of the good needs of people before the harvest of yams.
Also, Emmanuel Ndubisi beans seller, said that last year a bag of beans was N 80,000 but today it is about N230,000 to N260,000 depending on the type.
He said that last year, a bag of groundnut was N90,000 but today it is sold at N185,000, and a bag of maize was N45,000 last year but today is N100,000.
On his part, Anthony Mozo, a yam seller noted that insecurity and transportation as major reasons responsible for the high cost of foodstuff.
He also attributed the fuel subsidy as another major cause of the rising cost of foodstuff in the country.
He said the money they pay at the produce checkpoint has increased from less than N200000 to over a million.
He also disclosed that for a trailer to convey a trailer load, of yams from Benue state to Onitsha cost N25 million against N2 million last year.
Another market woman Mrs Philomena Ikemaka who sells tomatoes described the high cost of foodstuff as punishment to the poor masses.
She explained that before now a bag of potatoes was N8,000 but today it is N15,000 to N16,000.
She also stated that even those bringing the food items to the market are no longer coming often.
“Before now, we normally got about five or six trucks and five vessels coming into the market every day and today, we hardly get one vehicle and one vessel in a day” she added.
