05/08/2011 (Nigerian Tribune) - Four days after the commencement of Ramadan fast by Muslim faithful in the country, prices of foodstuffs and other commodities have gone up in Bauchi, the Bauchi State capital, this is just as people have been told to fear God and not make things difficult for others.

A market survey conducted by the Nigerian Tribune in some markets in Bauchi, shows slight increase in the prices of some food items, while others remain as they were before the begininng of Ramadan, which started on Monday, August 1.

A bag of rice that was sold for N8,000 before Ramadan is being sold for N8,500 as the Ramadan fast began, while a crate of eggs, which used to be sold for N800, is now N900.

Irish potatoe, which used to be N4,000 per bag, now goes for N6,000. This was, however, attributed by sellers to its scarcity in the market, adding that its price increase had nothing to do with Ramadan.

However, the Nigerian Tribune observed that a 10kg bag of Semovita sold for N1,800 before Ramadan is still being sold at the same price as of the time of conducting the survey. Same  goes for a bag of sugar, which is sold for N9,000.

The price of a carton of tin milk and powder milk ranges between N5,000 and N6,000 per carton, while groundnut oil has risen from N7,000 to N7, 200. Palm oil price remains stable as a jerrycan is being sold for N6,500.

A trader, Alhaji Muhammadu Umar, who spoke with the Nigerian Tribune at the Bauchi Central Market, said the slight increase in prices of food items was due to increase in demand, noting that, ”its the higher the demand, the higher the price.”

He, however, said that the increment was so little that the items were still affordable, adding that prices might crash as the Ramadan fast progressed.

But a cleric, Mallam Abubakar Umar told the Nigerian Tribune that there was no need for the price increment in the month of Ramadan and called on marketmen and women to ''fear Allah, not only in this month of Ramadan but also all the time so as not to make things difficult for the common man like us.''