By VICTOR ADEOTI

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) on Friday visited markets in Osun on a fact-finding mission to ascertain factors responsible for hike in food prices.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that FCCPC officials visited Olufi Market in Ayedaade Local Government and Ifon Market in Orolu Local Government.

The FCCPC met with market leaders and traders in the two markets visited to find out the reasons for the daily increase in food prices in the market.

Mrs Janet Odo, FCCPC South-West Zonal Coordinator, said that the visit was to interact with traders’ associations and marketers to ascertain factors responsible for the continuous hike in food prices in the country.

Odo said that the commission’s surveillance findings revealed that wholesalers and retailers were allegedly engaging in conspiracy, price gouging, hoarding and distort competition in the markets across the country.

She said that the visit was to ascertain the allegations and also sensitise traders on the fair market prices.

Odo said that the FCCPC officials were able to interact with traders’ consumers as well as those in good chains to know the main cause of hike in food prices.

“The whole essence is to ensure that the competition and consumers’ protection aspect of our mandate is being executed to ensure that consumers get fair pricing of food commodities.

“We have been able to gather some facts in the two markets visited and it will be collated, reviewed and will be used as a point of advising the Federal Government.

“The Commission’s priority remains to unlock the markets and address key consumer protection and competition issues affecting the prices of commodities in the food sector,” she said.

In his response, Mrs Bukola Ogunyinka, leader of market women association, Olufi market, said the hike in food prices was not the making of traders in the market.

Ogunyinka said that since the removal of fuel subsidy, prices of food items had been going up.

“We are not the one inflating the prices. We sell what we buy. A bag of brown beans we bought for N120,000 last week is now N160,000.

“Government should do something about this,” she said.

Earlier, Mr Muniru Adeyeye, who is the leader of the market men association in the market, also denied the allegation that the traders were inflating the prices of food items.

Adeyeye said that the cost of transporting food items was also responsible for the hike in the prices of food items.

“We are not the one inflating the prices of food items. The removal of fuel subsidy which is reflected in the cost of transportation is responsible for this.

“Since I was born, I have never experienced this kind of inflation. Government should act fast,” he said.

Mrs Mary Adetoye, who was in the market to buy food items, said that food was becoming out of the reach of the poor.

Adetoye appealed to the government to urgently intervene in skyrocketing prices of food items in the country.

Mrs Munirudeen Adeniyi, a rice seller, said that the closure of some land borders was responsible for the hike in the prices of food items.

Adeniyi said that the reopening of the borders would lead to reduction in prices of food items in the country.

He said due to inflation, he sells a bag of 50kg of rice for N75,000, which according to him, is on a high side. (NAN)

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