A cause for concern

The skyrocketing of prices of basic commodities in the country has now become a serious cause for concern.

It is rather unfortunate that as we move closer to the holy month of Ramadan, the prices of commodities such as sugar, meat and rice remain exorbitantly high.

This is unacceptable, and needs urgent redress from the government.

If people find it difficult to buy food for their families as a result of undue price rises, this could be very serious.

In order to remedy the situation, the government and the business community should once again engage in a dialogue for the betterment of all those residing in the country.

All the relevant stakeholders including the Gambia Chamber of Commerce and Industry should be involved in such an important meeting to resolve the situation, once and for all.

Despite assurances by the Gambia Revenue Authority when it introduced the Value Added Tax in January 2013, that VAT has not been introduced to increase prices of commodities, we feel very sad that it is becoming a tradition in this country to see businesspeople increasing the prices of basic commodities anytime they wish to do so.

We know that businesses are established to yield profit, but at the same time businesspeople should always consider the plight of their customers, and be more reasonable and flexible.

We are not saying that they should sell their commodities at a loss, but at a reasonable price, so to speak.

It is high time for government to put the necessary measures in place to avert the situation; we strongly believe that the matter can be solved amicably through constant dialogue.

Unavailability of affordable and accessible food will, no doubt, undermine the food self-sufficiency dream we want to achieve as a country, if the trend continues like this.

It is high time we started to grow our own food, and provided the necessary storage facilities, as this is the only way to overcome the frequent skyrocketing of prices in the market.

“Born out of concern for all beings.”
Buddha