Public Complaints And Anti-Corruption Commission (PCACC) in Kano has moved in to control prices of commodities that followed the recent hunger protest across the nation.
At a meeting with the Singer Market Development Association (SIMDA) and the Kano Bakers Association yesterday, the chairman of PCACC, Muhyi Magaji, stated that with the unexpected over 20 percent rise in the prices of commodities that followed the hunger protests, the state governor, Abba Yusuf, had instructed his office to intervene and resolve the situation.
The Kano Bakers Association had earlier announced the intention to withdraw from production of bread due to the drastic rise in the price of flour.
Chairman of the bakers, Jibril Abubakar, announced that they would stop production and allow dealers to eat their commodities because even if they continued, bread would not be affordable at retail points.
“Before the markets closed as a result of the hunger protest, the price of flour was N65,000. On return to the market after the protest, they started selling flour at the rate of N80,000.
“This makes it impossible for us to continue producing and selling bread because it is not affordable, so we decided to withdraw,” he stated.
He explained that his agency was able to trace the black marketers responsible for the price rise and had since gotten court order to deal with the situation.
Meanwhile, the two associations have agreed that flour would be sold directly to bakers by SIMDA at N65,000.
“This will not be limited to only flour, we will do the same with other commodities to ensure price control and unnecessary inflation,” he stated.
The PCACC chairman explained that the state government was on the verge of establishing a committee that would put an eye on the prices of goods.
“However, before the coming of the committee, we are going to have a department in this commission that will be in-charge of price control,” he added.
He advised members of the public to desist from exploiting the situation for personal gains.
