Nigerians Groan Under Soaring Price of Rice, Eggs, Tomato.
Nigerians have continued to decry the steady rise in food prices in the country, even as the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported at the weekend that the price of agric eggs, Rice and Tomato and other staple foods have continued to soar.
According to the NBS report on Selected Food Price for May, there was a 2.10 percent increase in the price of Agric Eggs from N530.40 in April 2021 to N541.53.
“Selected food price watch data for May 2021 reflected that the average price of 1 dozen of Agric eggs medium size increased year-on-year by 17.10 per cent and month-on month by 2.10% to N541.53 in May 2021 from N530.40 in April 2021 while the average price of piece of Agric eggs medium size (price of one) increased year-on-year by 22.41 per cent and month-on-month by 1.72 per cent to N49.99 in May 2021 from N49.14 in April 2021,” the NBS said.
Similarly, NBS report said that the average price of tomato increased by 9.47 percent in May, compared to that of April.
“The average price of 1kg of tomato increased year-on-year by 9.09% and month-on-month by 9.47 per cent to N303.51 in May 2021 from N277.26 in April 2021.
“The average price of 1kg of rice (imported high quality sold loose) increased year-on-year by 17.46 per cent and month-on-month by 0.65 per cent to N544.09 in May 2021 from N540.58 in April 2021.
The report also said that the average price of 1kg of yam tuber increased year-on-year by 13.96 per cent and month on month by 6.80 per cent to N269.98 in May 2021 from N252.80 in April 2021.
Meanwhile, Nigerians have continued to lament that they can no longer keep up with the rising cost of living as the country’s inflation keeps on soaring.
Cost of food in Nigeria increased 22.28 percent in May of 2021 over the same month in the previous year.
A public servant in a government agency in Abuja, Nnenna Okwuosa, said the continuous rise in the cost of food stuff is becoming alarming and heart-breaking because salaries have remained constant. She added that she didn’t even believe in the stats reeled out by government as they do not commensurate with the realities in the market.
“The rate at which the price of food stuff is going up is very heartbreaking and alarming. I don’t even believe in the statistics put forward by government. If you check, the price of eggs has gone up to N1700 in my estate market in Lokogoma.
“How do they expect us to survive on our meagre salary without increment but the price of rice, tomato and yam have continued to go up?
“If you check, almost all civil servants have turned to selling stuff to meet up the demand of their families but they are basically small items like clothes, bags and shoes. The gain is even very small and you are even selling to your colleague who collects a small salary like you.
“My brother, the worst thing is that people don’t pay you and there’s nothing you can do about it. I’m really tired because the whole situation is depressing,” Okwuosa lamented.
Another Nigerian, Tesoor Nyanmge, who works with a private company, lamented to Insidebusiness.NG that rice and eggs have become luxury, only for the rich as the average Nigerian can no longer afford these staple foods.
He said further that to survive, he has started learning how to install solar panels and inverter batteries from his cousin, just to make ends meet.
He said: “I’ve just been wondering how many people survive during these harsh times. Things are so expensive now that staple foods like bread, egg, rice, beans, yam and others are no longer in the quick rich of the poor masses.
“Surviving with your meagre salary has become almost impossible because my small salary cannot cater for me and my family.
“Right now, I’ve become an apprentice with my cousin who installs solar panels so I can learn the business. I cannot continue like this. My office owner always complains there is no money because of lack of clients our business. He has not even paid me for two months now. Where are we going to as a nation?”
For another civil servant at the Federal Ministry of Transport, who spoke to Insidebusiness.NG, said he no longer kept track of inflation but just buys what he can, whenever he has the opportunity.
According to him, most civil servants now have turned to borrowers and beggars just to survive. He lamented that he takes home a meagre salary because of accumulated loans and overdrafts.
“Civil servants in Nigeria right now are feeling the harshness of the economy more than others because our salary is so meagre. Right now, as I speak to you, more than half of my small salary is used to finance the loan I collected to pay schools fees for my children in January.
“By the time they do their deductions, what I take home cannot even reach one week, yet I have to survive till the end of the month in this harsh economy where things are going up every day. Only God will help us in this country,” he concluded.
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