For about two weeks now, more immediately after the EndSARS Protest and major looting accross Nigeria, Onions cost has increased drastically in Southern States and the country as a whole.

In Nigeria, onions are grown mainly in the northern part of the country, namely Kano, Kaduna, Sokoto, Jigawa, Plateau, Bauchi and Kebbi.

Though many thinks this is a deliberate move but some experts have shared what they believe is happening.

Nigerian households now have to dig deeper into their pockets to buy onions.

According to them, soaring demand, flooding and a poor storage situation seem to be the main causes of the skyrocketing price of onions in Nigeria.

Communication Practitioner, Crispin Odu says the reason why price of onions, and other food items in the country are increasing virtually every day are because:

• Farmers and farming communities in the North are being extorted large sums of money before they can access their farms and harvest crops.

• Some farmers have been kidnapped and their communities forced to pay ransoms for their release. Reportedly, some farms have been burned where money wasn’t immediately given to the bandits/kidnappers.

• I’ve never liked prophets of doom because I truly believe doom needs no prophet. So I won’t paint you a picture, I won’t sing you a sad song. With soaring food prices and possible scarcity, the phrase “clear and present danger” comes to mind.

• Meanwhile, in Chapter II of the 1999 Constitution, under Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy, 14 (b) declares that, “The security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government.”

• Yet security agents of Government are going around hunting peaceful #EndSARS protesters. The CBN is blocking their accounts and reportedly calling them terrorists. CAC is haphazardly trying to deregister an NGO set up to demand government accountability and good governance.

• Ostriches with their heads buried in sand comes to mind.

Some may think because the bandits are extorting farmers in the North it doesn’t concern them if they’re not living there. For now, I’ll let the price of onions, and other food items, talk to them.

• We know from history that when the security of a people, and the security of their food sources and supply lines are troubled, the consequences have never been pretty.

Yes, I’m a storyteller, but I’ll let that story tell itself. Here’s wishing you a peaceful weekend.

Buttressing, one Mukhtar Yusuf Usman tweeted –

Southerners should start coming by themselves to buy onions in kebbi, u would make a gud profit, b/c right now many of d Northerners dat normally take it to d south are afraid to go there, dats y onion is too cost in d south.

Moreso, consumers have taken to social media to trade complaints about the surging prices, comparing price rates in different regions of the country. The price of a bag of onions has shot up by nearly 200 per cent. Though prices vary in different regions depending on the availability of onions.

“The price of onions is usually higher this time of the year, November to December because this is the time when farmers grow this crop,” said one onion trader. “A bag of onions sold at the rate N18,000 before is now sold for N58,000.”

One consumer added: “The government should try to find a solution to this inflation and make the crop available to the people. During the autumn months, onions are usually very scarce and the ones you can see are always very high and our government is not even making any plans in providing any storage facilities for the produce to be available all year round.”