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By Kogi Rebel.
If they say Kogi is a Civil service state, why are cost of goods and services so expensive? Infact, it is an hyperbole of Abuja and Lagos combined. These towns are giant cosmopolitan states with more demands than Kogi State.
The level of poverty in Kogi State reduced by about 4% between 2015-2017, this was revealed by the Multidimensional Poverty Index, MPIs, statistics reeled out by an arm of the United Nations late last year. MPI is measured on three indices: Infrastructure, Healthcare and general Standard of Living. The Kogi State Government has sown into these baseline which transmuted into the improvement. This growth has been however been like a ghost to many Kogites who seldom believe that the economy has diversified from a civil service controlled to a multifaceted one.
Haven lived in both states of Lagos and Abuja, Lokoja ranks as the most expensive capital between Ikeja and Central Area.
I think there’s a foundational problem. Most North central states with mono-economy don’t have this kind of avarice. From very rude and lazy market women to Igbo mounting enterprises that sell products in their 500% of original prices because of market monopoly.
Painfully, most of these products are not genuine. Most Lokoja clothing stores are full of semi authentic clothes, while much of the rest are stuffed with Aba made clothes that sells more than the original ones you can find.
It snowballs to spare parts, hotel rates, motorcycle rates and even house rents. There’s no market or demand and supply playing out. I see extreme wickedness.
The prices of Houses in some parts of Lokoja competes with that of some middle arena areas of Lagos and Abuja.
If Kogi is not Maiduguri, why are things these expensive especially when it borders ten states in Nigeria? What exactly do the civil servants have to pay for the very expensive mouths of market people in the town? If we can excuse imported products, what about food commodities?
The reason why the state was too unbearable in the face of irregular salaries was due to this menace. Food items are so grossly expensive in a state that farm her own food products, from yam tubber, Ogbono, Maize, Beans, Rice, etc.
As a matter or urgency, even with free market economy at play, if the State Government does not erect a state Consumer Protection Agency of her own, her impacts to reduce the cost of living through infrastructure and incentives towards farming would be counter productive if the character and regulations system is not installed in the market hub of the state.
Our people always sulk dry without one month of salaries because they goods and other services keep increasing regardless of abundance.
Take for instance, while many Filling Stations in some states in Nigeria are already selling fuel at the regulated price of N145, the greedy and belly-bloated independent marketers in Kogi state and even some Mega 2 stations are still selling between N190-220 and above. It seems the Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, in the state has gone to bribe-into-sleep.
What about the hotels? Some of them have good spaces but need to upgrade on their customer services. A good number also have to regulate their prices to match the facilities provided. Cost of goods in any working economy is supposed to go with the strength of that economy, however, that of Kogi state has created a culture that tasks her indigenes to death.
If the market people notices slight improvement in the finances of the people, they inflate prices without any inflation at play. The market prices are not subject to deman and supply, hence, always fixed.
In some closure, we need to rise up as a people to protest the avarice of the market system. There’s a conspiracy of some few persons milking others dry. We also need to step down the spirit of hate, allowing indigenes to run some of these businesses which would reduce foreign-hand monopoly that shortchanges the people by insulating themselves with monopoly of running these ventures alone.
– Promise Emmanuel (Kogi Rebel)
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