•Abuja residents agonise over Christmas as austerity bites harder
From Charity Nwakaudu, Abuja
For residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the coming Christmas and New Year might be one of the most unpleasant in recentyears. To them, it is a no-brainer, especially when they benchmark their value-eroded income against the rapidly-rising inflation occasioned by government-induced economic tremors (petrol subsidy removal and naira float).
Many are neck-deep in debt, just as the cost of food and other goods are at an all-time high. Transportation cost is completely out of reach, forcing many residents to shelve the plans to travel to celebrate Christmas.
On the streets, there are no signs that yuletide is on the horizon. No decorations of buildings and homes, no Christmas songs blaring from loudspeakers at major markers to serenade shoppers. The mood is low and paucity of funds remains a hard blow.
Markets and gardens are scanty. Malls are dry. The roads are lonely. Activities are low. Fancy restaurants are deserted and the list goes on.
Paul Kalu, a businessman in the Wuse Area, Abuja told Daily Sun that the signs of a bleak Christmas were accentuated less than a month President Bola Ahmed Tinubu mounted the saddle as Nigeria’s leader. He said the president made two pronouncements that unsettled the economic landscape:
“The first was the petrol subsidy removal which hallmarked the beginning of full deregulation of the downstream sector of the petroleum industry. The development spiked the petrol pump price from N184/litre to as high as N640/litre depending on the location.
“The second is the unification of the exchange rate which saw naira tumbling from N461/$1 to about well over N1,000 in the parallel market.
“The economy has reacted to these two policies with prices of foods and other goods reaching stratospheric heights.
Expectedly, residents are wailing over increase in prices of commodities and services: “Even as a businessman, sales have dropped abysmally. I sell men’s clothes. What if I told you I’ve not sold a single pair of suits in three months, would you believe me?
“My little savings are gone. That’s my reality and I sing songs and hang out with friends to escape from this sad reality.”
Is Kalu traveling to his village, Ebem Ohafia in Abia state for Christmas?
“Hell no! I’m not going anywhere. Abuja is also a state. Let me celebrate Christmas here. I can’t afford the transportation cost, let alone other expenses in the village.
“Survival is the most important thing. I’ll do video calls with folks back home so they know I’m fine. As a bachelor, I appreciate the hell I’m facing. What about married people? Theirs must be worse than hell.”
Mwuese Peter, a civil servant lamented: “If you want to provoke my husband, tell him you want to travel home for Christmas. That’s when you will know he can bite. We’re not going anywhere. We’re staying in Abuja.
“No money for petrol. Airfares are high. Chartering a Toyota Sienna for all of us is about N300,000 one way now, anything from December 15 will be double that amount.
“By the time you aggregate the expenses, you need close to N1 million. If you have that amount of money, is Christmas travel the best way to spend it? What happens in January? School fees and all? We’re going nowhere.”
Daily Sun investigations revealed that transportation costs have increased significantly on all routes.
For instance, the fare from Kubwa to Berger, which used to be N250/N300, has risen to N550, while the fare from Kubwa to Area 1 has jumped from N400 to N700 during off-peak hours. For the peak periods, it hovers between N800-N850.
Similarly, the cost of commuting from Airport junction to Lugbe has increased from N200 to N400. The fare from AYA to Central Area has increased from N150 to N300, while the fare from Central Area to Kuje has risen from N500 to N800. The cost of transportation from Lugbe to Berger has equally increased from N200 to N300. Also, tricycle fares from NNPC junction to across have increased from N200 to 300.
The hike in fare has cascaded down to foodstuff. For grocery shoppers, hell has visited Nigeria as N200 red bell peppers are just two pieces. It used to be four or five pieces.
At Kubwa Market, a kilogram of local rice (one mudu) that hitherto sold for N1,500 rose to N1,700 depending on negotiation. The same measure of beans which was sold at N1,200 barely a week earlier was sold for N1,300 per ‘mudu’.
A rice seller at the market, Mallam Usman Haruna, said: “I used to travel to Nasarawa and Niger states to buy my stuff but last week, the drivers increased the amount by 90 per cent. Where we used to pay like N5,000, they will be charging N15,000 to N20,000 so it is really affecting the business.
“Some customers will come here and be talking to the sellers as if we are the cause of this hardship. We are also receiving the heat because at times after selling we can’t return to the market because it has also increased again. No profit again in this business. We are just coming out because we can’t stay at home.”
At Wuse Market, the price of rice, a major staple food, has risen to N1,800 per mudu. Both consumers and traders are lamenting over the continuous increase in price of food.
A consumer at the market, Lilian Ugwu expressed shock at the new price of rice, saying the commodity increases in price on a daily basis.