Traders in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and environs have called on the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to back down on its planned enforcement on exploitative pricing.The traders who spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday, said that transportation cost occasioned by the increase in the pump price of fuel was a driving factor on prices, especially food.
Ahmed Shehu, the Chairman of Nyanya Market Traders Association, said that traders do not just inflate prices of their goods.
Shehu listed factors that contributed to the hike in food prices to include transportation cost, insecurity and bad roads.
”If I want to go to Orange market, from Nyanya market to buy tomatoes, it cost about N2,000 to N3000 to do it before, but now, it costs about N15,000 to bring baskets of tomatoes from Orange market to Nyanya market.
”The trader will have to put all these things together and calculate their profit margin.
”What controls almost everything we do in the market is transportation, apart from the bad roads that we have,” he said.
Shehu said that the government needed to revive its refineries to help crash the prices of petroleum products and food items.
He appealed to the FCCPC to expand its meeting with traders to include representatives from Ministries of Petroleum and Transportation so that traders would voice their challenges to them.
The chairman appealed to the government to venture into mechanised farming to enable them produce some food products.
This he said would help crash down the prices of food.
”When governments (state, local) are producing tomatoes, rice and others, if they sell at a cheaper rate then, every other seller will be forced to bring down their prices”.
Mr Aloysius Oko, a cobbler at Mararaba market said the increase in the pump price of fuel had made the cost of his cobbling materials to triple.
Oko said it cost about N5,000 to make a new slippers before but the same slippers now cost about N15,000.
”I do not understand what the government is doing. They know what to do but surprisingly, they are not doing it.
”Why will they be talking about bringing down the prices of goods but they are increasing fuel pump price.
”It will not work, the government needs to do something urgently,” he said.
Mrs Fatima Hameed, another trader at Gariki market, said that no seller would sell his products below his cost price.
Mr Tunji Bello, the Executive Vice Chairman of FCCPC had said that the Commission had identified patterns of price fixing perpetrated by some market associations, price gouging, and other anti-consumer practices.
He said the Commission had noticed the margin in the prices of imported goods which he said was very disproportionate in many cases.
For locally produced goods, Bello said the Commission had noticed that some traders were excessively inflating prices.
He said the Commission would commence enforcement on those involved in exploitative pricing.
”Such practices are against the law and constitute some of the offences the Commission is against.
”To be clear, price gouging and price fixing are not only unethical, but patently illegal also under the FCCPA.
”Section 17 of the Act empowers the Commission to eliminate anti-competitive practices, misleading, unfair, deceptive, or unconscionable marketing, trading, and business practices.
Sanctions include fine of up to N10 million and a jail term for anyone found guilty by the court,” he said.
He said the Commission would soon commence enforcement on those involved in exploitative pricing.
