Calabar residents unhappy over rising cooking gas prices

Some people in Calabar, the capital of Cross River State, are upset about the rising price of cooking gas, also known as Liquefied Petroleum Gas.

The price of cooking gas in Calabar recently jumped from N1,300 to between N1,750 and N1,900 per kilogram at gas stations and from roadside vendors.

Residents shared their thoughts in interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria on Monday. They called the price increase "alarming and frustrating."

Uduak Edem, who works as a pump attendant at a busy gas station in Calabar, said she does not know why the prices went up.

"I am just an attendant. The management fixed the new price, and we were not told the reason for the increase.

"We were only told to sell at N1,650. That is what I am doing. We won’t disobey management’s order," she explained.

Noble Asuquo, a roadside gas vendor, said he sells one kilogram of gas for N1,900.

He mentioned that the price of cooking gas has been steadily increasing over the past three weeks.

"We were selling at N1,350 three weeks ago. This increase has reduced the purchasing power of my customers.

"Because of the new price, some users buy as little as one or two kilograms. It is rare to see people filling their cylinders these days," he said.

Josephine Udoh, a resident, believes cooking gas is becoming too expensive for ordinary people. She called on the federal government to take steps to lower the price of cooking gas for low-income Nigerians.

"I used to cook with a kerosene burner until it became practically impossible to get kerosene due to availability and cost.

"I started using gas with the hope that it would be more available and cheaper. Gradually, gas is becoming unaffordable," she said.