Several marketers in Montserrado are expressing frustration over low sales in the marketplace, blaming the situation on the frequent increase and fluctuation in the prices of basic goods. According to them, customers are now buying less or staying away from the markets altogether.
The concern comes amid growing frustration among local vendors who say the prices of basic commodities have been increasing and changing almost daily, making it difficult for them to sustain their businesses and for customers to afford essential goods.
At the busy Old Road Market and Rally Town Market, several marketers who spoke to this paper expressed anger and disappointment over what they described as the government’s inability to stabilize prices.
According to the marketers, the constant fluctuation in the cost of rice, oil, and other basic goods has created uncertainty in the marketplace. Vendors say they often struggle to determine selling prices because the cost of purchasing the goods changes almost every day.
“Things prices are changing on a daily basis, but the government doesn’t seem to care. Let them settle things,” an angry marketer at Old Road Market said during an interview.
Many of the vendors argued that the government has a responsibility to monitor market conditions and ensure that prices remain stable.
However, they claim that little has been done to address the situation, leaving both marketers and consumers to bear the burden.
Evelyn Garswa, a marketer at Old Road Market, said the current situation is affecting the livelihoods of many small business owners.
“We are suffering in the market. Every day the price is different. Today you buy something at one price, tomorrow it goes up again. It is making business very hard for us,” she explained.
At Rally Town Market, emotions ran high as some marketers called on the government to take stronger action to control rising prices and protect both vendors and consumers.
Speaking in an emotional tone, marketer Klubo Chowoi called on the national leadership to intervene.
“JNB I’m calling you as a die-hearted supporter, to please make the government enforce measures that will monitor and evaluate things prices,” she said.
Some vendors said that while prices occasionally changed in the past, the fluctuations were not as frequent or unpredictable as they are now.
“During Modad time things were not like this,” one marketer explained. “Now every day the price changes and we are the ones customers are blaming.”
The marketers insist that their call is not politically motivated but is based on the daily economic challenges they face. Many of them emphasized the need for stronger policies and actions that will help stabilize commodity prices and improve conditions in the marketplace.
They also noted that the rising prices are not only affecting their businesses but are also placing additional pressure on ordinary Liberians who depend on the markets to purchase food and other basic necessities.
However, the growing complaints from vendors highlight increasing pressure on the government to address the issue of rising commodity prices in Liberia’s local markets.
