What stunned many Sierra Leoneans recently is the increased in plastic bundle water from Two Thousand Five Hundred to four Thousand Leone across the streets of Freetown and even the provinces.
Cost of living for the average Sierra Leoneans is getting unbecoming as basic commodities continues to skyrocket to the disbelief of the wailing public who are not having redress from the public.
Poverty is boldly printed in the faces of Sierra Leoneans; take a stroll through the streets of Freetown and the provinces you will see job seeking youths with a ferocious face arguing hopelessly with no one to come to their rescued.
The Minister of Finance recently assured Sierra Leoneans of a bumper job creation through the agricultural sector to help alleviate the unemployment rate in the country.
“All these are rhetoric,” they said, we wanted to see the reality, we are tired of pointless talking, we need action and not intention.
Both the social and mainstream media over the past weeks have being calling on President Bio to relieved his Finance Minister who was vociferous in opposition on the bread and butter of Sierra Leoneans.
Recently, the Finance Officer of the Electricity Distribution Services Authority says in Freetown that the Authority is running at a loss (Le311billion) from buying electricity at Le1,575/KWh and selling at Le1,355/KWh and suggest increasing the cost of light by 23% (Le1,635/KWh) or 56% (Le2,085/KWh) all these will hard more adversity to the hapless Sierra Leoneans.
The Ministers of Trade and water Resources should urgently come up with a press release to deflate the actions by the Sierra Leone Water Sachets Companies and other unscrupulous traders that are in the habit of hiking prices to the detriments of wailing public.
Hon. Hinga Sandi and his colleague Minister starts visiting or engaging the traders and other stakeholders to see how they can have a uniform price for foodstuff across the country.
Several traders who spoke to this medium also squarely put the blame on the hike of foodstuffs due to the foreign exchange which continued to shoots up uncontrollably.
Price as of February 2018 to the 3rd of October 2019 is alarming to say the least, FEB 2018, Rice (OAU Big Bag) Le: 170, 000, 3rd Oct 2019, Rice (OAU Big Bag), Le: 240, 000, Feb, 2018, Palm Oil (per pint), Le: 2, 000, 2ND Oct 2019, Palm Oil (per pint), Le: 3, 500, Feb 2018, Cooking Oil (per pint), Le: 3, 000, 3rd OCT 2019, cooking Oil (per Pint), Le: 4,000, Feb 2018, Pure Water, (Per packet), Le: 250, 3rd Oct 2019, Pure Water, (per packet), Le:500, Feb 2018, Cement (per Bag), Le: 50, 000, 3rd Oct 2019, Cement (per Bag), Le:60,000.
The above prices show how things are getting stiffer for the ordinary Sierra Leoneans who continued to toil day and nights to make ends meet.