Increase in the cost of goods and services, particularly food, appear to be bitting harder on residents of Port Harcourt, Rivers State as many locals in the area, now find it difficult to make ends meet.
Our Reporter visited market places and spoke with some respondents, who lamented over the effect of the increase in fuel cost which continual rise in the prices of most commodities.
They both criticized the President’s sudden removal of the fuel subsidy without taking adequate measures to cushion the effect.
A vendor at Rumuokoro Market, Umeadi Okorie, claimed that a small basin of garri now cost between N7,000 -N9,000 while a bag of rice goes for N45 000.
A trader at the oil mill market also bemoaned the status of the food prices today and how the price increase has worsened with time, affecting both traders’ and consumers’ ability to purchase goods.
“I ask myself the question, “Is it still feasible for these things to fall down again?” when I consider how things, particularly food products, are increasing in our country”, he said.
“Unlike before, our clients now cut back on demand as a result of their declining spending power. Things have suddenly worsened, which has led to sporadic market trading activity.
He said before now, he used to sell 100 bags of rice two years ago but such are no longer visible and such are preventing him from stocking up his businesses with that quantity at the amount they now cost.
In addition to rising transportation costs, locals lamented the high cost of food in outdoor market places.
A customer, Doris Eke, a mother of two, noted how challenging it was to equip her kitchen with food, adding that the cost of staples like spaghetti, milk, milo, bread, and eggs have drastically climbed.
“Years ago, if I go to the market with N10,000, I could buy something nice, but these days, it’s difficult for me to even buy enough food with that kind of money.
“My youngster likes noodles so much, but picture a carton of a tiny indomie that which was once about N1,500, is now N3,500. Its price has suddenly doubled, as you can see.
