The economic growth and development of a sovereign State surges from ever flowing prospects of businesses in buying and selling. Taking advantage of a Nation’s prevailing circumstances for transactional exploitation of innocent citizens is barbaric, intended inhumanity and reckless evil. A rice in the prices of goods and services without justifiable reasons calls for immediate attention of market determinant forces.
The outbreak of Corona virus in Wuhan China has permeated thousands and millions of industrialists into hiking the purchase value of various items as lock down has been referred to as the godfather of all increases in respect to restriction of movements. The hardship brought by the pandemic may have long lasting negative effects on the economy of Nigeria.
It is pertinent to note that Nigerians who are known for using difficult times to gain more have added pain to the hardship being experienced in the country. While responding to a Guardian Newspaper’s interview, April 20th 2020, a distraught resident of Abule-Egba area of Lagos State, Mrs. Moyinsoluwa Adeola said that It’s so heart-breaking that in times like this, we have chosen to be evil and wicked to one another. We are our own problems.
A cup of rice now sells at N500 from 450; a bag of sachet water sells at 150 from 100; and hand sanitizer of N800 from N300. To eat at this present time is war. I mean practically, everything is on the hike when we have a lot of challenges to face. This affirms the fact that some human beings have intentionally increased purchase value of their products to make frivolous profits.
The most disgusting is, even the items purchased on whole sale’s normal prices by sellers before the outbreak out the corona menace are being sold at unrepentantly affluent prices which makes it hard for the common man with average income on the street to buy. This is man’s inhumanity to mankind.
April 3rd 2020, the leader of the Indigenous People Of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu postulated that hiking the prices of items in Nigeria will amount to a disperse of wickedness against average livers who depend on daily meagre incomes for survival.
In a video twit by one Nigerian Dancer, Choreographer and fitness coach, Kafayat Oluwatoyin, she said that Nigerians are the ones dealing with themselves right now. In her words “we are heartless people, especially those in the market selling things, they’re merciless and evil”.
”A basket of ginger now costs N5000 from previous N1000 because of greedy fellows who want to make massive profit by all available crooked means”. To draw an inference from her position, it will be astutely apt and pointful to state that an average Nigerian is greedy and wants to manoeuvre his/her ways to quickened wealth accumulation. This is an evil trend that must be curtailed as the end of Corona virus can not be distinctively be predicted yet.
Worthy of note is the experience of the author of this piece in a survey of market activities. The prices of some goods in the Eastern part of Kogi State had little increases, especially the ones supplied from neighbouring States.
Some questions need to be answered, how does Covid-19 aid increase of Bush meat’s price? How does it affect garri made from farm? How does it affect local food items in our village markets? The prodigal intention towards life has pushed even innocent sellers to doing what’s wrong to amass wealth unnecessarily.
A clothe designer, shoe repair specialist, automobile repair specialists have all increased their charges on delivered services in the name of Covid-19, it’s amusing to think of how this came to be. It’s pitiably pathetic to air that most of the inhabitants of Nigeria are kleptomaniacs whose desires for more know no bounds.
To cushion the effects of this lock down on the prices of daily needed things, first, the Government must put in place necessary apparatus for selling prices control. Such laws must be strictly adhered to by market men and women, defaulters who dare to trade anything beyond Government’s approved price should be arrested and prosecuted.
We need to learn on how to be our brothers and sisters’ keepers, increasing the price of existing stock before the advent of Corona virus is a show of inhumanity. Intentions towards making ungodly profits from over raising price is nothing but an act capable of pushing many average livers into early graves as the power to purchase at such rates do not exist with them.
Leaders of the association of various marketers should put up a task force that will have the sole responsibility of surveying prices of items sold to customers, sellers who refuse aligning with controlled price list should be subjected to suspension. Such task force should be empowered with the presence of law enforcement agents during a patrol through the market observations to avoid havoc lovers.
Like it is obtainable in advanced Nations of the world, an online community market where items can be bought at Government’s approved prices ought to be put up to ease the sufferings and pains of low income earners. Workers of such platform should be empowered with sanitized mobility source for easy distribution of ordered and paid for items without delays.
A continued “TOTAL” lock down can lead to death of innocent souls from starvation as feeding has become a serious turbulence to many, therefore, other States should learn from places like Kogi to relax curfews for NCDC approved movement of needed food items to help the citizenry.
At difficult times as this, well meaning Nigerians ought to rise and give out alms to those in sincere need to help relieve them of their difficulties. Rather than eating and throwing left overs away, helping hands should be extended to those who live below the average line. Through these, Nigeria can be a better place to live irrespective of odds posed to it by prevailing issues.
