Price hikes, food shortages stoke public anger and discontent

By OBINNA EZUGWU

Mama Tosin wore a hard face as she walked into a food store at Oke Alafia Street, Ojodu, a suburb of Lagos. She had come to buy rice, and although she already knew the price, she asked Tony, the shop keeper again. Perhaps there had been a change. “Local rice, Derica N400, foreign rice, Derica N500,” Tony told her. “But the poor quality local rice is N300.”
She sighed. “Give me the local one.”
This writer had visited Tony’s shop for market survey, and inquired from Mama Tosin what she felt about the rising food prices. Barely able to contain her anger, she told a familiar story. Life has been tough, to feed her family of four has become a huge task, and of course, she had nothing but curses for country’s president, Muhammadu Buhari. It is a pattern of growing discontent with the Buhari government, which has heightened in recent days on account of hike in tariff and imposition of new taxes amid Covid-19 induced economic hardship.
First was the hike in value added tax from 5% to 7.5% which inevitably added to inflation. Following from the hike, Multi Choice, owners of pay TV companies, DStv and GOtv adjusted upwards, its packages. The company raised the price of its premium subscription from N15,800 to N16,200. Compact plus subscription increased from N10,925 from N10,650. Compact bouquet to N6,975 from from N6,800. Similarly, Confam subscribers now pay N4615 against N4,500, while Yanga subscribers pay N2,565, up from N2,500.
For the sister network, GOtv, Max subscription was increased from N3,200 to N3,280, Joli N2,460 and Jinja N1,640.
The VAT had perhaps more impact on foot prices. In August last year, the federal government which had slammed a ban on importation of foreign rice, decided to shut its borders with neighbouring countries altogether in bid to end smuggling, and grow local content. It immediately led to spike in prices of food and other items, a situation further compounded by the new VAT regime. In the case of rice, the most popular staple food the country, the price increase was nearly 100 percent.
But the burdened populace were encouraged to endure since it was for the good of the country. Local rice producers would soon flood the market with products and price would come down. It did slightly with time. Then the pandemic came, and with it, the lock down that started in March 2020.
It proved costly. Restriction of movement, combined with the preponderance of police toll gates billing transporters of food items, caused prices to soar. Price of gari more than doubled. A bag of yellow gari went from N8500 to N17,000 and the white type from N7500 14,000. Consequently, a ‘paint’ went from N600 to N1200 for the yellow variety, and slightly less for the white variety.
Rice went from N26,000 to N30,000 per 50kg bag for the imported variety, while the local variety went from N18,000 to N22,000. A 50kg bag of beans also rose to N22,000 for the ‘white’ variety, and N13,000 for brown ‘oloyin’ variety.
The prices have remained largely the same, even with easing of lock down. And with the large swaths of farming communities in the country’s North and Middle Belt regions, the food belt of the country, inaccessible on account of attacks by Boko Haram, cattle herders and sundry bandits, affecting food supply drastically, it could be yet morning on creation day.
Frustrations among the populace, unable to cope with rising cost of living amid falling naira value, have continued to grow, even as an unemployment has reached worrying proportions.
“The present administration has acted with gross impunity in its handling of matters of national importance since inception,” said Bar Oladotun Hassan, spokesperson for National Alliance for Development (NADEV), a pro democracy group.
“By unrepentantly pursuing a set of inconsistent, unfocused and ineffective policies,the current administration has overstressed the Nigerian population that is grappling with a rising spate of general insecurity amidst mounting unmitigated poverty.”
The country’s unemployment rate has more than tripled since the Buhari government came on board five years ago. The prognosis, observers say, are foreboding.
Quarter 2 figures from the NBS predictably saw unemployment rate climb to 27.1 percent (up from 23.1 percent in Q3 2018, when the unemployment report was last published), while underemployment rate—which reflects those working less than 40 hours a week, or in jobs that underutilize a person’s skills, time, or education— jumped to 28.6 percent.
But even worse, among young Nigerians aged between 25 and 34, the largest bloc of the labor force, the unemployment rate currently stands at 30.7 percent .
“We are suffering, there is no money and even when you manage to get N5000, you can’t buy anything with it,” laments Mr. Idris Taiwo, an artisan at Ojodu. “Now I can’t feed my family. I voted for Buhari, but I now regret.”
The official inflation numbers came in with the release of CPI report by the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) for June. It rose by 12.56 percent year-on-year in June, 0.16 percent points higher than the rate recorded in May (12.4 percent ) on the back of surging food prices.
The report showed that composite food index rose to 15.18 percent compared to 15.04 percent recorded in May 2020 while Core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce that stood at 10.13 percent in June 2020 compared to 10.12 percent recorded in May 2020.
The GDP figures, which analysts insist is not adequate for measuring living standard in Nigeria, came in at minus 6.1 percent in the second quarter of 2020, the NBS report said.
“Gross Domestic Product decreased by –6.10 per cent (year-on-year) in real terms in the second quarter of 2020, ending the three-year trend of low but positive real growth rates recorded since the 2016/17 recession.”
The contraction, though not as bad on paper, compared to what has obtained in countries that imposed similar lock downs, bears grave consequences for an economy already battling the headwinds long before Covid surfaced, with growth at barely 2% after a biting recession in 2016. Another recession appears inevitable.
Analysts say the contraction is expected to tell on households’ disposable income amidst falling purchasing power of naira. Price instability, being one of the core objectives of Nigeria’s central bank has worsened production cost, even as the manufacturing sector grapples with rising cost profile.
The impact is hitting home, and discontent is growing, not least in President Buhari’s core Northern constituency; a constituency that had before now, held him up as a kind of messiah.
“Buhari and his government have failed and become a treat in our lives. People are dying of hunger because of food insecurity, On the road because of number of portholes, Kidnapping, terrorism and banditry because of insecurity. Poor health sectors. Is this the change??” wondered Z A N N A HSparkles, a twitter user @__usyy.
Zanna is one of the many Northerners lashing out at president over the mounting economic challenges under the hash tag, #NorthenPejects.
“People are suffering, people are dying of hunger. Things are becoming very difficult for us,” wrote another user, @Ummiee_ “Uncompleted #NorthernProjects unable to fulfilled the promises made for us. Some of our parents find it very difficult to feed their family. Food stuff are costly in the market,killings, kidnappings, raping and we the students are tired of staying at home. Each and everyday things are getting worse. We are really heartbroken….”
“President Buhari have left us to starve while his family keep enriching themselves and marrying rich people,” wrote Sarki, @Waspapping_ “Truth is, none of the rich men getting married to his daughters today would’ve looked their way 6 years back before he became a president.”
Tariff Hikes Cause More Agony.
A few weeks ago, the Federal Inland revenue Service (FIRS) introduced 6% stamp duty on house rent for tenants in high end locations, and 0.78% for those in low end areas. Coming as Nigerians were battling the impact of the pandemic, not many took it lightly. And just as they stepped into the ember months, Nigerians were confronted with the news of sudden approval of hike in electricity tariff by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), to take effect from the very day of the approval, September 1, 2020.
NERC in the approval document, said electricity customers, except those receiving less than 12 hours of supply, would have to pay more for power,.
It categorised customers into maximum demand and non-maximum demand customers, as against the previous categories of residential, commercial and industrial customers, with different bands (A to E) depending on the level of supply.
For Ikeja Electric, a residential customer on single phase receiving a minimum of 12 hours of supply will now pay N42.73 per KWh, up from N21.30 per kWh.
For Eko Electricity Distribution Company, a residential customer on single phase receiving a minimum of 12 hours of supply will now pay N43.01 per kWh, up from N24 per kWh.
For Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, a residential customer on single phase receiving between 12 to 16 hours of supply will now be charged N45.69 per KWh, up from N24.30 per kWh.
Kaduna Electric announced on Twitter on Monday night that non-MD receiving between 12 and 16 hours will be charged N50.10 per KWh, adding that the tariffs for customers receiving less than 12 hours had been temporarily frozen.
“Following consultations and directions on tariff policy, the commission hereby approves a deferment of the applicable tariffs for customers in service bands D and E (that is customers with a service commitment of less than an average of 12 hours supply per day over a period of one month) for the period September 1, 2020 to January 1, 2021,” NERC said.
The hike has only added to the flame of frustrations, but while it has not caused much outrage, another price hike, this time, Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise called fuel, has led to growing protests and more visible anger.
The Federal Government through the The Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPRA) last week, announced increase in pump price of PMS from N138.62 to N151.56 per litre, triggering marketers to increase pump price from N150 to N162 per litre.
Spontaneous protests have broken out in Osun State and elsewhere in the country, and many say they are mobilizing.
“The fuel price hike is an extra burden on us and our families. The increase in electricity tariff is an extra burden on us and our families. The increase in Value Added Tax is an extra burden on us and our families; and the general increase in food prices,” lamented Mr. Chika Unegbu, Deputy National President, Trade Union Congress (TUC).
“We are mobilising our members for our planned protest on Tuesday. Some are talking about a court order; but to the best of my knowledge, we are not aware of any court order stopping our planned protest. I am also not aware that our secretariat has received any court order; our people have not been served. As a matter of fact, we are preoccupied with mobilising our members for the protest.”
In a press release by Dr. Tanko Yunusa, head of its public affairs bureau, Nigeria’s emergent citizens’ movement, the National Consultative Front (NCFront) said it is incensed and aghast over President Muhammadu Buhari government’s “inhuman ambush of Nigerians with an increase in the ex-depot price of petrol.”
The group which stated this in a statement on Wednesday by Dr. Tanko Yunusa, Head of its Public Affairs Bureau, noted that being a grassroot mass movement, it has observed the melancholic mood of Nigerians following reports that the Petroleum Products Marketing Company, a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, on Tuesday increased the ex-depot price of PMS from N138.62 per litre to N151.56 per litre.
“We utterly regret that the administration is carrying on as if its sole aim of seeking and acquiring another term of political power is to punish Nigerians for a supposed grouse that has remained unclear. Else, there’s no other reason as to why a government would so prey on hapless citizens still battling with untold hardship foisted by Covid 19 lockdown. However, it is now up to the Nigerians to join hands with NCFront Leaders of conscience in emancipating themselves from a ruling class that can neither guarantee their security nor care about their welfare,” group co-founded by former presidential candidate and professor of political economics, Pat Utomi, noted.
“Some of the litany of woes visited on Nigerian citizens by the Buhari Government range from the serial increase in petroleum products since it came into power, jacking up of the Value Added Tax (VAT), introduction of stamp duties in all banking transactions, and the obnoxious, callous and unconscionable recent introduction of tax on all Tenancy and Lease Agreements.
“Nigerians, if nothing is done can expect more vindictive economic policies tailored towards ensuring that the citizenry is pauperised into docility and submission to the administration’s full-blown dictatorial proclivities. The recent punitive amount of N5,000,000.00 (Five Million Naira only) for hate speech announced by the Minister for Information, Mr. Lai Mohammed, was another building block in the construction of the edifice for despotic rulership by the Buhari regime.
“We believe that the impoverishment of citizens by the demobilising economic policies of the Buhari government is aimed at weakening Nigerians’ resolve to challenge the ruling political at elections by making them docile, malleable and submissive to the Buhari regime. Nigerians can wean themselves off their complacency and docility by joining NCFront to pull off a major Electoral Ballot Revolution that is underway.
“On the same score, the Front also condemns the various state governments’ transfer of the economic hardship brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic to their already impoverished workforce, who we observe are being treated as scapegoats and made to bear the burden of state’s dwindling revenue occasioned by Covid 19 lockdown among others like reckless corruption and incompetence.
“We have noted that workers in some states were not only paid a miniscule fraction of their meagre salaries, but are now being sacked arbitrarily in flagrant disregard of labour rights so that government officials can continue to live extravagant lifestyle aided by pilfered public funds.”
Hassan also said his group will “mobilize for an indefinite all Nigeria mass action to resist the hikes and all manifestations of government impunity if current administration grandstands on its grounds to commence on Tuesday, September 10, 2020.
“Recall that since inception, the current government of Buhari has increased the fuel pump prices more than five times in a country that is barely struggling to survive on a fast-dwindling economy.”