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FLASHBACK: Rams Were Also Out Of Reach In 1999. When Will Nigerians Leave The Trenches?
In the buildup to today’s Eid-el-Kabir festival, there was only one complaint on the lips of Nigerian Muslims across Nigeria: Rams are out of reach. But is this the first time? No.
A little over 25 years ago, Nigerians had the same tune: The Rams Are Out Of Reach. In fact, this was the exact headline in a report by P.M. News on Thursday, March 25, 1999.
The report addressed how Nigerian Muslims were struggling to buy a ram for Eid-el-Kabir, also known as the Ileya festival.
“The hard times have certainly affected how Nigerians worship God,” the report begins.
“Now, many Nigerians can not kill rams during Sallah celebrations, which was not the case in the past. Why?
“The price of such rams has simply gone beyond the reach of the average Nigerian.”
The newspaper report featured an interview with a female Muslim journalist in Lagos who lamented that her family was not killing even a fowl.
She said the price of ram was simply too high for her family, signalling that there was zero chance of them offering up a ram in sacrifice to Allah (SWT).
“This year, we are not killing any fowl, not to talk of a ram. We are killing fish,” the journalist told P.M. News.
“The reason is simple- the price of a ram is just too high for the family to afford.”
“A round trip to most ram markets in the Lagos metropolis readily confirmed the female journalist’s submission,” the writers of the report added.
A rams market (Photo: TheCable)
It’s Déjà Vu for Nigerians
History repeated itself this year, 25 years on. It’s an unfortunate case of the past being a key to the present. It wasn’t a past Nigerian Muslims wanted to experience.
On Friday, Eko Hot Blog reported how indigenes of Epe expressed deep concern and frustration over the soaring prices of rams at the Oke Oyinbo Epe market this year.
In an interview with our correspondent on Thursday, June 13, 2024, Mr. Hassan Olayemi, the chairman of the Kara Oke Oyinbo Epe Market, highlighted the unprecedented price hikes.
“We are finding it hard to make a profit of even ₦10,000 on a ram that we purchase for ₦800,000 from the North,” he lamented.
The high cost of transportation to bring the rams to Epe further exacerbated the situation, according to traders who spoke with Eko Hot Blog: It was the same story all across the country.
The high transportation cost also links back to history: The P.M. News report of March 25, 1999, noted that one of the reasons for the high cost of rams was traders paying a bribe at different police checkpoints on their way to Lagos.
Yes, the ugly trend has regrettably persisted.
28-Year-High Inflation Rate in Nigeria
The current realities in the market have led to a 28-year-high inflation rate.
Yesterday, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released statistics showing Nigeria’s yearly inflation rate at 33.95% in May 2024, the highest since 1996.
Food Inflation was also 40.66% in May 2024, up 15.84% points compared to the rate recorded in May 2023 (24.82%), showing a pattern of continuous increase in prices of food, without an increase in wages since 2019.
According to the NBS, the rise in food inflation was caused by increases in prices of the following items: Semovita, Oatflake, Yam flour prepackage, Garri, Bean, etc. (which are under Bread and Cereals Class), Irish Potatoes, Yam, Water Yam, etc. (under Potatoes, Yam and other Tubers Class), Palm Oil, Vegetable Oil, etc. (under Oil and fat), Stockfish, Mudfish, Crayfish, etc (under Fish class), Beef Head, Chicken-live, Pork Head, Bush Meat, etc (under Meat class).
The Million Dollar Question: When Will Nigerians Leave The Trenches?
There is a common saying among Nigerians whenever there is intense economic hardship: “We’ve Never Had It Worse.” However, history disagrees: Nigerians have had it worse at least once in the past.
Nigerians have endured years of failed and empty promises by hapless political leaders who scream “reforms” that are never positively felt by the masses.
Every day, there is a reminder of Nigeria’s past economic foes due to the grand failure of current leaders.
Therefore, it’s anyone’s guess when Nigerians eventually leave the trenches.
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