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It’s essential to acknowledge that news production incurs expenses, and we take pride in never placing our stories behind a prohibitive paywall.The trader said the high cost of living has resulted in low patronage as families now buy only what to feed on and not exotic goods any more. Shehu Galadima, the Chairman of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria in the state, attributed the rising prices to the current economic downturn and security challenges hindering farmers’ activities.
At Lokogoma, Adankolo, Koton karfe, Ayingba, Okene, Kabba, Basa, Itobe and Lokoja old markets, the prices of yam, tomatoes, pepper, Irish and sweet potatoes and vegetables have slightly fallen. A check over the prices of gari and cassava flour showed that a measure of gari was N1,500 or N2,000 against N1,300 or N1,700, while cassava flour is now N800.
Some traders who spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria in Kogi faulted the insinuation that prices were reduced due to the nationwide protests. “A bag of sweet potatoes was N50,000, but today, it goes for between N35,000 and N30,000 in the markets. The same goes for a bag of pepper , which has dropped to N50,000 from N70,000, ” he said.Zainab Bashir, a vegetable seller at Lokogoma market, said the prices of ugwu, water leaves, spinach and ewedu have drastically dropped.
She also attributed the rise in the prices to the high transportation cost due to the high cost of petrol. “Our marketers, they should be considerate because making gain at the detriment of other fellow citizens is not good at all, especially that food scarcity is all over the country,” Mr Ojomah said.
“It is actually because this is the harvest time for these foodstuffs, hence their availability and price drop,” he said.