The Amalgamated Union of Foodstuff and Cattle Dealers of
Nigeria (AUFCDN) says it prefers that farm produce go to waste rather than
tolerate continued attacks on its members in the south.
Awwalu Aliyu, an official of the union in an interview with
TheCable in Kano on Tuesday said the decision not to supply food to the south
was not to starve southerners but to protest attacks on their members.
Aliyu alleged that some members in the south were killed,
maimed and lost properties especially during the #EndSARS protest and the recent
Shasha market crisis in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital.
WE’D RATHER LOSE THE FARM PRODUCE
When asked if members of the union were not concerned about
food items locked up inside trucks in Jebba, Niger state, going bad and leading
to losses, Aliyu said: “It would be better to lose the food items than to lose
lives”.
“You’re talking about
losing goods; which one is better, to lose a life or to lose property? Losing
property is better than losing a life.
“We prefer and our people will prefer to lose those farm
items or goods than to continue losing their lives. If you are alive, you can
plant another thing, you can rear another cattle. But if you’re dead, you can’t
do that again. Only the living can go to the farm.
“We do not want to destroy anybody. We do not want to kill
anybody. The number of Yorubas and Ibos that reside in Kano and Kaduna alone is
far more than the number of northerners in the entire south-west, south-south
and south-east.
“Also, the investments of Yorubas and Igbos in Kano and
Kaduna, running into billions of naira is more than the entire investments of
northerners in the south-west, south-east and south-south if you remove
Dangote. Our people are only petty traders, shoe shiners, fingernail cutters,
wheelbarrow pushers, okada riders and so on.
“Our people in the south don’t have what southerners have in
the north. They have farmlands, buildings and a lot of properties that run into
billions. We do not intend to touch a needle out of it. We do not intend to destroy
anybody’s property. What we want is to have our people protected from being
killed.”
Farmers who spoke to TheCable lamented the inability to
transport their farm produce to the south.
Some tomato farmers said they have begun to dry their
produce in order to preserve it as selling rates in markets across Kano are not
favourable.
The situation is similar for onion farmers.
MEAT, PEPPER SCARCITY
HITS LAGOS
Ishola Tawakalitu, a septuagenarian who sells beef in the
same market, lamented the current prices of meat. She said the abattoir, which
records an average of 1,000 cows killed every day, is now struggling to meet a
100 target as vehicles are not bringing in cows from the north.
“What we used to buy for N30,000 is now N60,000. I called
Alhaji (describing her supplier) this morning, he said they didn’t kill cows.
So everywhere is tight,” she said.
“The strike hasn’t
allowed them to bring cows from the north so sales in the market have been
greatly affected.”
Yakubu Danjuma, a butcher, said a cow that previously sold
for N200,000 now costs N400,000.
“Everything is now expensive. No trailer brings cow here now
due to the strike. It is only small vehicles and the prices are very high. A
cow is now N400,000, something you used to get for N200,000 or N250,000. It is
a wrong time to buy a cow,” he said.
At the Ile Epo Market in the Iyana Ipaja area of Lagos, tomatoes
which previously sold for N200 now cost N300 while that of N400 is now sold for
N600.
Hassan Ismail, who purchases beans from Kano, said a bag of
honey beans ‘Oloyin‘ now cost N47,000 compared to the previous N44,000 and
White beans which used to sell for N42,000 now costs N44,000.
WE’RE RUNNING AT A
LOSS, OYO TRADERS LAMENT
At the Eleyele Market in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital, a
tomato trader who identified herself as Mummy Bisola said she has been
travelling to Lagos to purchase goods since the clash in Shasha Market
happened.
According to her, a basket of tomatoes that she initially
bought for N7,000 is now N18,000 while pepper increased from N10,000 a sac to
N30,000.
“After the Shasha fight and Makinde closed the market, I
have been going to Lagos to buy tomatoes. But I have been to Lagos this morning
and I came back empty-handed,” she said, pointing to her almost empty shade.
“If nothing changes by tomorrow, you will not even see a
single tomato in the market. It is not just in Ibadan, even in Lagos.”
The situation was not different at the Bodija Market.
Sitting by the side of the road, a trader with a downcast
face, despite the high rate at which she got her goods, most of them were
spoilt.
“I am running at a loss. It is the Hausa people that are
fighting the federal government. They said people damaged their vehicles so
they need them repaired but the government did not respond to them. So they
said any bus conveying pepper should not be allowed in. They blocked the road,
that is why pepper is now expensive,” she said.
“A bucket of tomato is now N2,000 while a bucket of rodo is
N3,000. Before it used to be between N700 and N1,000.”
FOOD INFLATION ON THE
LINE?
Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed
that food inflation figures recorded in January 2021 was the highest in more
than 12 years at 20.57 percent.
The federal government is making efforts to tackle
inflation; including reducing the import levy for vehicles to transport food
items and tractors.
“So, once this implementation takes full effect, we are
hoping that we’ll be able to see more tractors coming into the country, more
mass transit buses coming to the country, reducing the cost of transportation
as a result, and also having an impact on food prices,” Zainab Ahmed, the
minister of finance, budget and national planning, said.
The implementation of the reduced levy has begun and only
time will tell if the desired goal will be achieved.
Culled: TheCable
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