News
High Cost Of Food, Cooking Gas Angers S’South Residents
Residents in the South-South have sought Federal Government’s intervention in the ever-increasing cost of food items and cooking gas in the region.
The analysts, who made the call in separate interviews, said government should stem the rising cost of the items through proper economic recovery plan and implementation.
They added that Nigerians should assist government in minimising the excesses of middlemen and market associations in hiking the prices of commodities.
The residents also identified the major factors contributing to cooking gas price hike in the nation to include lack of functional refineries and off-takers for gas distribution.
On prices of food, they identified market forces, insecurity, farmer/headers clashes, insurgency, banditry, poor storage facilities and Covid-19 outbreak as causes of food price hike in the country.
Although the analysts appreciated current government’s efforts in solving the problem, they advised that the intervention should be urgent as food was one of the basic necessities of life.
A civil servant in Asaba, Mr Vincent Adeoye, said: ‘’Our challenge has become double in the sense that the cost of food items is high likewise that of cooking gas.
“How do we survive in this present situation when we buy a cup of beans for N150 and one kilogramme of cooking gas for N700?
“Our salaries cannot even feed our families, not to talk of paying school fees and rent. It is only God who helps us to survive.
“The present economy is making things too difficult for us and I will appeal to the government to come to our rescue.”
Also, a civil servant, Mrs Deborah Diai, said she had resorted to using charcoal for cooking since ‘’the price of domestic gas is now within the reach of the rich.
“Three kilogrammes of gas do not last up to five days for me, because we are family of six,” she said.
The Chairman, Ika Liquefied Petroleum Gas Dealers Association, Mr Onyeka Eze, said the increase in the price of domestic gas had affected the consumption of the product in the area.
According to him, before now, a kilogramme of gas sold for between N300 and N320, but in the last six months, the price had gone up to N650 a kilogramme.
“Before this increment, we dispense as much as 100kilogrammes daily, but as at today, it takes us almost three days to sell 50kilogrammes of it”.
Eze urged the Federal Government to intervene in the continual increase of the price of domestic gas.
In Rivers State, a civil rights crusader, Mr Livingston Wechie, urged the government to tackle the situation, saying, ‘’basically, there’s a tremendous hike in cost of living.
“While commodity prices are on the increase, wages and remunerations have remained static even when only a few percentage of the country’s population earn salaries.”
Wechie urged government to reconsider a proper economic recovery plan to ensure that basic commodities for daily survival took precedence over any other infrastructure.
He lamented that the price of domestic cooking gas had gone up from N3,500 to almost N10,000 for 12.5kilogrammes.
He also attributed the high cost of foodstuffs in the country to the challenge of insecurity, farmer/headers clashes, insurgence and banditry.
Similarly, the President, Etche Farmers’ Cooperative Union, Mr Godwin Akandu, urged government to reinvigorate the economy by ensuring direct funding of farmers and strengthening security.
A Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) mini-tank farm operator, Mr Sunil Umar, attributed the current hike in prices of cooking gas to lack of functional refineries.
Umar said the situation was compounded because of lack of off-takers, to effectively distribute the huge quantity of gas produced by the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG).
According to him, the NLNG has always allocated to the Nigerian market as much as 450,000MPTA quantity of gas from 2015 till date.
Also speaking on the high cost of cooking gas, Operations Controller, Department Petroleum Resources (DPR), Uyo, Mr Victor Ohwodiasa, attributed the increase to deregulation of the sector and market forces.
“The gas market is deregulated and is driven by market forces; so the issue of demand and supply comes into play.
‘’Another reason is that there are some tariffs that were imputed by government recently; so that is why the price has jumped up.
‘’If we talk of gas penetration, gas availability and gas reliability, then, something should be done about the price,” he said.
Ohwodiasa, however, said that government was working hard to intervene and stabilise the price of cooking gas.
A housewife in Uyo, Mrs Glory Inyang, said that the high cost of cooking gas had affected the feeding allowance given to her by her husband.
“I used to buy 12.5kg of cooking gas for N3,750, but today I have just bought the same quantity for N10, 000; this is on the high side,” she said.
Another housewife, Mrs Margaret Joseph, lamented that both the cooking gas and food items had become exorbitant at the same time, causing lot a lot of hardship to Nigerians.
Similarly, the Edo Chairman of the Grassroots Farmers Association of Niger Delta, Chief Emmanuel Odigie, identified insecurity, activities of market associations and bad roads as reasons for high cost of foodstuffs.
Odigie claimed that the farmers/herders clashes had made it almost impossible for most farmers to access their farms for fear of being killed or kidnapped.
He also attributed the high cost of food and other commodities to the lack of interest in agriculture on the part the youths.
‘’The youths in our state are not interested in agriculture. All they do is travel abroad for greener pasture wh8those left behind hunt for white-collar jobs.
“The Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic is also a major factor and as long as market associations exist, prices of foodstuffs and other agricultural commodities will continue to rise,” he said .
Contributing, Agricultural Extension Officer, Nigerian Stored Products Research Institute (NSPRI), Sapele, Dr Samuel Agoda, attributed the hike in prices of food to post harvest losses experienced by farmers.
“For the few farmers that are producing this period of insecurity, storage facilities are a major problem.
“Most of these crops go bad easily after harvest because of lack of storage facilities,” he said.
Agoda, however, noted that the federal government, through NSPRI, had developed series of post-harvest technologies for farmers to store produce in the post-harvest value chain.
The governor has also pledged to upgrade the Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC) in Bille with a view to addressing the health challenges confronting the community.
Fubara made the pledge on Wednesday at the Government House, Port Harcourt during an enlarged meeting of key stakeholders, comprising representatives of the Federal Government, the state government and leaders of the community.
The meeting was held to review the situation in the community and explore available opportunities to save the people from the adverse impacts of environmental pollution.
Addressing the journalists at the end of the meeting, the governor acknowledged the determination of the Federal Government and its agencies to get to the root cause of the problem in Bille and ensure that it is resolved permanently.
“The meeting is in respect of the situation in Bille. You’re aware that there is a case of gas leakage somewhere in Bille and the people have been making some requests that the government should come to their rescue to resolve the situation.
“As a state, we have gone to see the situation in the community, not alone but in conjunction with the industry operators and officials of the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources. What we are doing today is an enlarged meeting where all the parties are sitting together to look at the cause of the issue and the most possible way to get the problem resolved,” he said.
Fubara described the outcome of the meeting as successful, stressing that more action would be taken in the next couple of weeks to ensure that the issue is fully resolved.
The Minister of State, Petroleum Resources (Gas), Hon Ekperikpe Ekpo, who led the Federal Government’s delegation to the meeting, expressed appreciation to the governor for his warm hospitality and efforts to address the challenge in Bille community.
Ekpo explained that contrary to the perception in certain quarters, the Federal Government has not been silent over the “gas seepage” but has been working tirelessly towards finding a sustainable solution.
The minister explained that as soon as the incident was reported, the Federal Government deployed experts to the area to understudy the cause of the problem.
According to him, it was difficult at first to understand the cause of the problem since there were no oil or gas infrastructure within the vicinity of the incident, hence the need to conduct a more detailed investigation.
“The investigation is still going but we decided to do a follow-up visit to the area to talk to the people of Bille Community that we need collaboration on their part so that we would be able to arrive at a lasting solution.
“The safety of the people is paramount. We can understand their anxiety, the worry and the danger that this thing poses within the area, but the Federal Government is committed to finding a lasting solution to the problem. The primary responsibility of government is to take care of the welfare and security of the people and that is exactly why we are here to go and see things for ourselves,” he said.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, also explained that as the regulatory agency at the centre of the issue, no effort will be spared in the task of resolving the issue.
Eyesan pledged that the NUPRC and operators in the industry were prepared to address the requests of the impacted people in terms of the provision of potable water and fire trucks to the community.
The Public Relations Officer, Council of Chiefs, Bille Kingdom, Chief Rena Dappa, had during the meeting, presented the challenges facing the community and pleaded for government’s support to save the lives and livelihoods of the people.
The President stated that the scheme is aimed at creating jobs, closing the country’s metering gap and improving electricity supply.
The President disclosed this in a statement on his verified X handle yesterday, describing the initiative, tagged “The Power Force,” as part of his administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda to expand employment opportunities for young people.
According to Tinubu, the programme will equip participants with practical technical skills and connect them to employment opportunities in Nigeria’s power sector.
“Through the Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI), which I established to close Nigeria’s metering gap, end estimated billing, protect consumers and strengthen the electricity market, we are opening a new pathway for 5,000 young Nigerians to be trained as meter installers and technicians under The Power Force. This programme is about jobs, skills and dignity,” he said.
Tinubu said the training would be open to eligible Nigerians who have completed their secondary school education, with a dedicated quota reserved for members of the National Youth Service Corps.
He noted that expanding electricity metering was critical to improving service delivery and promoting transparency in the power sector.
“When homes and businesses are properly metered, Nigerians can pay for what they actually use. When electricity distribution companies collect revenues more transparently and fairly, they are better able to reduce losses, maintain infrastructure, expand connections and invest in better service.
“This is how we build a power sector that is fairer to consumers, stronger for investors and better able to deliver reliable electricity to the Nigerian people,” the President said.
Tinubu said he had directed the Presidential Metering Initiative to work with the Federal Ministry of Youth Development, the National Power Training Institute of Nigeria, and other relevant stakeholders to commence the programme within the next 30 days.
He encouraged qualified young Nigerians to apply, saying the initiative would provide them with marketable skills while supporting efforts to eliminate estimated billing and improve electricity access nationwide.
“I encourage eligible young Nigerians to apply. Join The Power Force. Learn a skill. Earn with dignity. Help us end estimated billing and be part of the work to light up Nigeria,” he added.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs disclosed this in a statement issued yesterday by its spokesperson, Mr Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa.
According to the ministry, the Air Peace-operated flight is expected to arrive at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, at about 5:30 a.m. on Friday, July 3, 2026.
It said the evacuation is part of the Federal Government’s ongoing efforts to facilitate the voluntary return of Nigerians from South Africa.
“The third evacuation flight operated by Air Peace will depart Johannesburg today by 12 midnight with 271 returnees. The estimated time of arrival in Lagos is 5:30 a.m. on Friday, July 3, 2026,” the statement read.
The latest batch of returnees follows earlier evacuation flights that brought hundreds of Nigerians back to the country under the Federal Government’s voluntary repatriation programme.
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