Last week, I detailed fun, creative yet easy crafts you can make (aka DIY) to decorate your homes and offices without breaking the bank. If you have yet to read it, here’s the link: DIY Crafts To Try Out This Festive Season
Today, I’ll be writing on what is in no doubt, every Nigerian’s mind on how to spend their Christmas/New Year’s holiday in a way “that pleases God and their pockets.”
I am sure every single Nigerian had high hopes at the beginning of this year, especially with the elections and economy but at the moment inflation is desperately clinging tight to our necks and not letting go this December.
Christmas is a time when Christians come together to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ who was born over 2000 years ago.
In the Nigerian culture, it is a time for merry-making, traditional marriages and weddings. A period for annual migration to respective villages to see relatives, masquerade introductions in some cultures and feasting till the New Year arrives.
Nigerians love going all out for their parties and celebrations but this year’s celebration is coming amidst severe difficulties in the country.
There’s a popular slang Nigerian youths commonly use: ‘Sapa’ and almost everyone is having a ‘Sapa’ moment in the country during this period.
(Sapa means a state of financial incapacity or extreme poverty usually due to excessive/extravagant spending)
It’s less than 13 days to Christmas, today and aside from the harmattan breeze and the occasional Christmas song played from the speakers of a hopeful neighbour, there is nothing to signal the usual festive cheer in my area.
In previous years, Christmas shopping would have been in full swing at this time, tailors would be busy with last-minute bookings, transport companies would have ‘serviced’ their vehicles and sometimes, purchased new buses to meet the demands of their passengers travelling to various parts of the country for the festivities and little ones would be playing with fireworks, counting down to D-day.
But the reverse is the case this year. A lot of families are struggling to make ends meet on regular days and this period is no exception.
Mallam Sanusi, who owns a tiny stall where he sells snacks and provisions near my home had revealed that since the Christmas season started, the prices of goods he normally buys had been shooting up drastically.
He had said: “I have been finding it difficult to shop lately because the price you see today at the market won’t be the same with tomorrow’s own. I keep increasing the prices of the things I sell but it is almost never enough to keep me by because of the inflation.”
Mrs. Ann Okosi, a local seamstress in my area had also disclosed the difficulties she was facing with the economy this season. According to her, customers had not patronized her much this period.
“Last year I was swamped with orders from customers. Even with the help of my apprentices, I could barely keep up. My shop looked like a mad house that period, irrespective of the fact that people were claiming inflation last year.”
“However, this year, nobody is making moves to sew a new outfit. I’ve heard some of my friends say that they would be wearing their old attires to events this year. I have never seen anything like this before.”
For a resident who wished to be kept anonymous, his biggest worry was the price of a bag of rice. According to an article published by BetaSales.ng towards the ending of November, the price of a 50kg bag of foreign rice retailed between N55,000 to N60,000 while Nigerian rice was priced between N50,000 to N69,000 and N80,000 (for Ofada rice)
To really put a perspective on the economic reality for many Nigerians, a popular rice brand has begun selling its commodity in sachets.
