Xmas frenzy
•The good, the bad, the urgly
Saturday, December 26, 2009

All fun lovers all over the world, especially in those parts where Christianity is rife are basking in fun and merriment. In such places, even non-Christians have been co-opted into the Christmas frolic for some obvious reasons of the euphoria the season brings.

In Nigeria, the story is not different because the season has assumed social trappings in addition to the religious angle the whole world attaches to it. Because the season comes at the end of the year, which eventually spills into the new year, many join in bidding the year farewell and in welcoming a fresh year which gives then fresh hope of better days. The dimensions of this social angle keep enlarging that many in Nigeria use the occasion for so many other activities.

Those other attachments – marriages, house warming, fundraiser, community gatherings, development projects launch and others have made Xmas a very busy and warm social season in the calendar of the people.
Because many financially elevated Nigerians live in the urban areas, at such times, they travel to their homelands to fraternize with family members who they left earlier in the year to seek greener pastures.

The movement leads to a serious pressure on the transport system. But while in some countries outside Nigeria this pressure does not actually lead to hike in fares, instead some discounts, the opposite is the case in Nigeria.
Saturday Sun found out that the increase in volume of travels in this season is like twice the entire volume in the earlier months of the year. Since we don’t have many avenues of travel like in many developed countries, the volume is hard for the shallow system of only land and air to handle. The result is competition in pricing like a bazaar sale and the fares jump. But in those countries where the rail and sea transport is effective, the pressure is less hectic.
As at December 19, fares to the eastern part of the nation had jumped from the usual N2,500 to between N5,000 and N6,500 per passenger.

In fact, Xmas has come to be characterized by hike in prices of goods and services all over the nation. Foodstuffs go beyond the reach of the common buyer. The prices of rice, garri, food condiments, tomatoes, fruits, vegetables are jerked upwards by dealers. This is also associated with rise in demand for the goods because the people travelling and those that remain in the cities must live on food. There is always panic buy that affords the sellers the excuse to apply their cut-throat attitude and greed in their services in the name of Xmas rush.

To the common and struggling man in Nigeria, Xmas has become a period of tears as those things he used to afford at his capacity get out of reach. We also found out that there is more money in the system then as many persons who had been saving to make sure they are not left out in the celebration dip their hands into the till to make certain provisions available. In some instances, food scarcity is experienced in the market as many farmers who had been toiling all year feel that Xmas is the time to relax and interact with their loved ones who just visited the rural areas. Some also take time off a little before the festivals to refresh and put up better appearance. It entails less food output and more pressure on the available one.

Shopping during Xmas is heavy and sometimes chaotic. A good example are the markets at the urban centres like Lagos, Onitsha, Aba, Abuja, Jos, Kano, Ibadan, Benin City and many others where it seems residents waited till the last week to go shopping for wears and food and gift items. The volume of shoppers is like 10 times the usual. The sellers capitalize on this to have their day and exploit buyers.
It is pitiable to see how shoppers lament about unbearable hike in prices of goods. “But in other countries, you hear of price cut, bonanza, auction sales and special Xmas discount sales. I can’t understand why the season calls for the opposite in our context. Would that mean we are intentionally punishing ourselves or that we are not customer friendly in our businesses here”, a disappointed shopper asked in anger at a market in Ikeja, Lagos.

But there are very few exceptions to the rule of price hike in some places. In some big markets, importers and wholesalers clear their warehouses of old goods and embark on auction sales. Such is common at the Idumota market in Lagos and the Onitsha Main Market and Ariaria in Aba. At such auction sales that is essentially for wears, clothes that sold at about N1,000 previously could come as low as N6000 because the dealers want them off their stock to make room for new ones or because they had already sold the bulk of the import and made their profit.

But the general rule is shoppers groan, travellers complain, food gets scarce, more money comes into the hands of dealers, but all come round in the beginning of the next year to complain that January is a long month because money gets scarce after the heavy spending.
Saturday Sun report in this package of the season is as diverse as it is detailed and explored all the angles and issues related to Xmas in Nigeria, as you would find.