(L-R) Clifford Onyeike, DGM, marketing and strategy, Visafone, discussing with R. Balachadran, CEO at the first national Easter celebration draw in Lagos recently.

Residents in Nigeria's Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is already experiencing high cost of foodstuffs ahead of the Easter festivities. BusinessWorld Intelligence can disclose that an early shopping strategy embarked upon by some residents of FCT with a view to getting better bargains in order to save money has turned futile as  shoppers complained bitterly over soaring prices of food items.
Early buyers who thronged major markets in the territory expressed concern over non availability of Irish potatoes, banana, pumpkins, lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes, pepper and onions and many other essential vegetables that are expected to be highly consumed particularly during the period.  Many residents have attributed the high cost of livestock as well as food stuff partially to the crisis that recently rocked cities in Plateau State where large quantity of food items are ferried to the capital territory.
BusinessWorld Intelligence revealed traders in the territory may have commenced a general upward review of prices of all food items following government announcement that salaries of federal civil servants would be increased within the next one month. Already, many grocery and superstores have embarked on deleting prices on tags that were hitherto labelled on consumables and replaced them with new ones.
The hiked prices on food items and children’s personal effects have forced some people ready to do Easter shopping to visit neighbouring markets in spite of the numerous consequence associated with long distance journey amidst petroleum products scarcity. It seems, besides the ever increasing cost of accommodation and transportation, the jerking up of food stuff prices might soon make living in the city tortuous for residents.
Investigations further revealed consumers in the territory had, before the festivities, heaved a sigh of relief following the suspension of a warning strike by foodstuff traders in the northern part of the country who bemoaned high and multiple taxations by government officials. Just as normalcy was returning to the markets, as many trucks from various parts of the country were seen conveying assorted food items into the markets, buyers are now contending with abnormal rise in prices to as high as 52 per cent on items cut across-board all edible items.