Benin – Traders and consumers in Benin, the Edo capital, have decried the persistent rise in the prices of food items in the state six weeks after the Yuletide season.
Some of the traders and consumers who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Benin on Saturday attributed the hike in prices of food items to devaluation of the naira.
They, therefore, called on the Federal Government to address the situation before it gets out of hands.
Checks by NAN in some major markets in Benin on Saturday showed that prices of almost all food items except vegetables such as tomatoes and Onions had skyrocketed few weeks after the Yuletide.
The survey showed that the price of a 50kg of rice and a big bag of beans which sold for N10, 500 and N13, 000 during the Yuletide now sell for N12, 000 and N17, 000 respectively.
Mrs Favour Omoregbe, a trader at the Ikpoba Hill market, said that a carton of fish now sells for N12, 000 as against N10, 000; a 4 litre gallon of vegetable oil now goes for N1, 500 as against N1, 200.
She told NAN that a bag of salt now sells for N2, 000 as against N1, 500 during the Yuletide.
The trader said that the hike in food prices had crippled their businesses as they no longer enjoy high patronage.
Another trader, Mrs Abigail Otubor, said that a bag of wheat has increased from N13, 000 to N17,000, a measure of Ogbolo went up from N3, 000 to N6, 000.
She said that a measure of melon now sells for N1,600 compared to N1,100 sold during the Yuletide.
According to her, traders have to sell the way they buy so that they can also make some profits.
“But most consumers are finding it difficult to adapt to the increment in the prices of food item,” she said.
A cross section of the consumers interviewed expressed displeasure over the persistent rise in food prices and prices of other commodities in the country, calling on the government to intervene.
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They said that the situation had exposed the masses to more hardship as there was less money in circulation to spend, coupled with non-payment of salaries in some states.
They called on the Central Bank of Nigeria to come up with policies that would strengthen the nation’s currency at the foreign exchange market. (NAN)
