Residents of Calabar, the capital of Cross River State, have expressed dismay over the recent surge in the price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas, commonly known as cooking gas. The cost has escalated from N1,300 to between N1,750 and N1,900 per kilogramme, as reported by gas stations and roadside vendors.
In separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria on Monday, residents described the price hike as both alarming and frustrating. Uduak Edem, a pump attendant at a popular gas station in Calabar metropolis, admitted she was unaware of the underlying cause for the increase. She stated, "I am just an attendant. The management fixed the new price, and we were not told the reason for the increase. We were only told to sell at N1,650. That is what I am doing. We won't disobey management's order."
Noble Asuquo, a roadside gas vendor, revealed that he now sells one kilogramme of gas for N1,900. He noted that the price of cooking gas has been steadily climbing over the past three weeks. "We were selling at N1,350 three weeks ago. This increase has reduced the purchasing power of my customers. Because of the new price, some users buy as little as one or two kilograms. It is rare to see people filling their cylinders these days," he said.
Josephine Udoh, a resident, lamented that cooking gas is gradually becoming unaffordable for ordinary citizens. She urged the federal government to take deliberate steps to reduce the price of cooking gas for the benefit of low-income Nigerians. "I used to cook with a kerosene burner until it became practically impossible to get kerosene due to availability and cost. I started using gas with the hope that it would be more available and cheaper. Gradually, gas is becoming unaffordable," she said.
