Price control’ll help subside steady rise of commodities – Ogun Statistician-General
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The State Statistician-General, Mr. Michael Babatunde Ajayi, has revealed that if the government should introduce price control measures, it will drastically help in reducing the steady rise of food items and other commodities.
Mr. Ajayi, who made this known shortly after a survey of markets around Ogun Central, Ogun West and Ogun East axis of the State by the State Bureau of Statistics, submitted that the hikes were noticed shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic, but have been on the upward trajectory in the last 12 months.
Represented by the Director, Social and Economic Statistics, Mr. Bolarinde Abimbola, the Statistician-General stated that situations are similar in all markets as the prices of staples such as rice, maize, garri, yam beans and oil have doubled or even tripled, saying it affected other commodities such as electronics, clothings and toiletries.
He revealed that these hikes in prices of food items and other commodities were due to various factors such as insecurity and low productivity in the agricultural sector, noting that sellers of food items and other commodities are part of the problems encountered during the survey, as they deliberately increase prices of items for their selfish gains.
“Early last year, 2023, a plastic of garri sold for five hundred naira is now sold at the rate of one thousand five hundred naira which represents an increase of 200% between January 2023 to June 2024”, he said
Speaking on behalf of traders in Arigbajo market, the Secretary of Egbejoda Market in Arigbajo, Ifo, Chief Akinbola Oludayo, commended the Dapo Abiodun-led administration for providing enabling environment for them to transact their businesses, appealing to the State Government to help curb the unlawful act of deliberately increasing prices of commodities by sellers in the various markets in the state.
In her submission, the Iyaloja of Olabisi Onabanjo International market, Chief Mrs. Oloruntele Ogunba expressed her worries over the drastic increase in the prices of commodities, saying the incessant increase in prices scares consumers away while appealing to the government to provide lasting solutions to the situation.
A consumer, Mr. Ibrahim Gbadamosi while fielding questions from journalists at Egbejoda market, Arigbajo, Ifo, firmly stated that most sellers are the major causes of price hike, pleading with the government to introduce price control to curb the unlawful act perpetrated by these sellers.
The markets visited were Arigbajo Market in Ifo, Lanfenwa in Abeokuta, Olabisi Onabanjo International Market, Ijebu Ode in Ita -Osu, Remo Market and Siun Market.
