Price of garri, “students’ food’ now almost unaffordable

Some students in Ilorin have decried the sudden increase in price of garri, commonly referred to as “students’ food’’, saying it is almost unaffordable.

Some of the students expressed their concerns in separate interviews withnewsmen on Saturday in Ilorin.

The students said it had become almost impossible to have a day’s meal with the increase in the staple food.

A student of Kwara State Polytechnic, Dayo Abiodun, said that it was difficult to feed with the sudden increase in the price of Garri.

He said a bowl of garri which was sold at N150, now sold for N240 in the market, while a cup now sells at N30.

Garri

“In the past, you see your room mates sharing garri among themselves freely but since the end of last year, no student can afford to willingly give out a cup of the commodity.

“Garri is the most friendly and easily accessible food for us as students but now it has become scarce commodity in the hostel,’’ he said.

Another student, Suleman Sheriff, said that garri used to be his fast food to quench hunger but the increase in its price had changed that.

“I was surprised to see the price of garri going up uncontrollably. Students are not finding it funny at the moment because it is our favourite food.

“We are not even talking about rice, beans, yam, palm oil or groundnut oil, garri should not have gone this far,’’ he said.

A student of the University of Ilorin, Kemi Adedeji, who described garri as the most stable food for students, said something must be done to bring down its price.

“No matter the situation in the country, the price of garri must be controlled for the sake of students and the average Nigerians, ‘’ she said.

Another student of the University of Ilorin, Kola Alabi, described the hike in price of garri as unjust, adding that this had only created a lot of hardships for the students.

“We students mostly survive on garri and now that the price is beyond our reach, what else do they want us to feed on,’’ he lamented.