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See What Nigerians Are Going Through By Ladi Ibrahim Nigerians may yet face another round of hardship as the price of wheat bread is likely to increase as from this week, announcing the new development, the national president of association of master bakers and caterers of Nigeria, Chief Bayo Folarin said prices of wheat bread will increase by a margin of between N5 and N10 as from this week due to the recent increase in price of wheat flour from the flour milling association of Nigeria. According to him, the price of 50kilogrammes of wheat flour was increased by the flour milling association from N2,830 to N3,230 recently. In order to accommodate the substantial increase in factors of production and to continue in business without causing a dislocation in the industry, the association, having consulted with members and other stakeholders resolved to increase the price of wheat bread. Smaller loaves will attract a minimal increase of N5 while the big one, N10 from Saturday, January 27, 2007. and, bread is one of the cheapest food items that the poor and commoners eat, now the price will go up, this is in addition to the inflation that is already very high and keeps moving up, people are being retrenched in droves all in the name of rightsizing, and this is unfortunately happening in a country that is saturated with limitless poverty and unemployment. In fact, infant mortality rate in Nigeria today is like what it was in Britain in 1849. Apart from all this, the national economy is in tatters, the Gross Domestic Product, Gross National Product, Per Capita Income, Capacity Utilization of Industry is abysmally low, the standard of living is very high, inflation is galloping, bank interest rate is beyond the reach of many affluent people, talkless of the downtrodden, Naira has been over-devaluated, there is no accurate and reliable CENSUS figures, planning in Nigeria at all level of government is very problematic, elections are always rigged, those in government are there for personal gains, not the interest of the people or even their country. In addition, all the roads across the length and breadth of the country are in a deplorable state of disrepair, agriculture has been neglected as Nigeria imports most of what it consumes, oil has been grossly mismanaged as Nigeria imports most of the oil it uses, even when it has oil in abundance, education and health sectors are in a shambles, power supply is erratic and epileptic, even when Ghana has celebrated 10 years of uninterrupted power supply, less than 29% of the entire Nigerian people use pipe-borne water, the aviation and tourism sectors are very bad state, so nothing seems to be working in the country and the president has making noise that his reforms are the best thing to have happened to Nigeria, but the reforms are not having the desired impact on the generality of the people that actually needs succour at this trying times. The PDP is not Nigeria and Nigeria is not PDP. That president Obasanjo has tried to embody both does not mean that it is so or should even be so. Nigeria is bigger than any individual or organization and it reflects a grand delusion to think and believe otherwise. Moreover, the hysteria about the fate of current reform is unnecessary and diversionary. It is very unfortunate that the present government under president Obasanjo is not working to bring the national economy out of the woods; instead the president is engaged in undemocratic and unconstitutional way and means of stopping Vice President Atiku Abubakar from contesting from the highest position in the land. And, this is not the reason for electing the present government. In fact, the 1999 constitution says the primary essence of government is security and welfare of the people, but government has not kept to this very germane provision of the constitution. The essence of public office is not to settle cheap political scores but to improve the state of economy as well as up the socio-economic conditions of the people. The purpose of governance is to provide qualitative and quantitative service to the people. But as things are in the country today, governance is in abeyance and this should not be the case that is why people should vote wisely during the 2007 general election, they should for vote for a new Nigeria for all Nigerians. By Ladi Ibrahim Plateau State
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