OFFICIALS of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Council stormed the popular Oseokwodu food market in the commercial city of Onitsha on Thursday to find out reasons for the galloping increase in the cost of food items.
The traders, through their leaders, said the market is usually a place known for purchasing items at cheap prices, noting that for the cost of food items to be high at Oseokwodu, is an indication that things have got out of hand. He said: “These days, traders now go to rural places because farmers who manage to harvest crops fear to transport them by road for fear of kidnapping.
“Sometimes, farmers call traders on the phone and tell them that there may not be supplies in the near future because the bandits were terrorizing them. In that way, the trader, who knows that he will not get stock, will decide to hike the price of the available ones.DELSU-ASUU to FG: Sign Nimi-Briggs c'ttee 2009 agreements to forestall crisis