Bauchi residents lament cooking gas price hike

Some residents of Bauchi have expressed concern over the increase in cooking gas prices amid scarcity of the product. 

A check by the report in Bauchi on Friday, showed that prices of Liquid Natural Gas (LPG) went up by over 40  per cent in the last five months.

The situation was compounded by scarcity of the product as most of the sale outlets had ran out of stock.

A kilogramme of the product was sold at N1,700, as against its old price of N1,200.

Mr Nnemeka Chidi, a cashier at a gas station in Yelwa area of Bauchi, said prices had increased significantly compared to five months ago.

He said the hike in prices affected sales, as many customers could no longer afford to buy gas in large quantities.

“Most customers now buy between one and five kilogrammes,” he said.

Miss Faith Dano, a student of the Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi, said the hike in prices affected her negatively,

Dano said that she could no longer afford to buy more than two kg of gas, and now relied mainly on electric cooker.

Mr Mohammad Yusuf, a businessman, who came to refill his gas cylinder, noted that although the price had increased, he still preferred gas to charcoal and firewood because it made cooking faster and more convenient.

Mrs Maimuna Isah, a housewife, said the increase in gas prices had forced her to resort to charcoal for cooking in spite of its cumbersome process.

“Presently, I only use gas to boil water for the children before they leave for   school in the morning,” she said.

Isa called for proactive measures to ensure availability and regulate prices to ease the burden on the low income households.