Flood turns blessing in disguise for Lokoja residents

Photo credit:9jafoods.

By Dada Ahmed in Lokoja.

Few weeks after the devasitating flood that hit Lokoja, Kogi State commenced receding, fish has become cheap commodity in the area and its environs, The Reporters reports.

Our correspondent,who visited the old and markets in Lokoja on Tuesday, reports that the two markets were flooded with fish,a development that falls the price of fish to affordable rate.

Many fish sellers,who spoke with our Correspondent attributed the development to the quantum of fish that came with the recent flood in the area.

“We are not happy that we had flood in Lokoja recently, because of its devasitating effects on many victims, but the positive side of the natural disaster is the effect of large number of fishes that came with up the flood.

“Now that the flood is receding appreciably, the fishes have no where to go, hence, they have become handy for fisher men to catch in plenty, which sort of forcing their price on down ward trend, thus making fish the only consumable commodity in Lokoja with relative cheap, price presently.

“This is indeed, a blessing in disguise,most especially for flood victims and a small relief to the general public from the steam of high cost of living in Lokoja,a fisher man, Malam Isah Abubakar told our correspondent during an interview at the waterside in Lokoja.

Finding by our Correspondent indicates that whereas, an average fish buyer could hardly buy fish of N2,000 and get satisfied with the price before the flood, N 1,000 worth of fish is enough to make soup for family of four to make souplasting one or two days.

Experts in fish business envisaged, in separate interview with The Reporters, that more fish would be available for consumption up to December with affordable price as the flood continues to receding daily.

Meanwhile, commodities other than fish have continued to attract enormous increase in their price tags,a development attributed to high inflationary trend and scarcity of fuel manifesting in virtually all aspects of social and economic life of the residents.

For instance, one egg is now N100, instead of former price of between N30 and N50, depending on the size,a loaf of bread goes for N1,000 instead of N300 and N400, it was few months ago.

The smallest quantity of spinach, popularly called “efo” in many of Nigerian languages, has gone up to N100 instead of N20.

Other soup ingredients such as meat, “pomo”,tomato, pepper, salt, onion, red oil, yam, gari, yam or cassava flour among others have gone beyond the purchasing capacity of the “common man” in Lokoja and its environs.

Residents, who spoke with our Correspondent called on the federal government to halt the abysmal fall of naira to dollar and other foreign currencies.

The residents, who called on the Kogi State Governnent to establish commodity price board to check shylock market men and women, also urged the federal government to find lasting solution to the lingering fuel scarcity in the country.

“When the prices of fuel and diesel among petroleum products are at the level where drivers and other stakeholders in transport sector can afford them, this will translate into low transport fare and reflect on prices of goods and services,” Malam Suleiman Adamu, a retired civil servant said.