Interviews and photos by Subhana Shiwmangal
Stabroek News spoke to members of the public in the areas of Kuru Kuru, Yarrowkabra and Marudi on the Soesdyke-Linden Highway, about the rising cost of living and how it is affecting them. The following are their comments:
Neisha Motilall said: “Sometimes prices for items goes up and then drop in the market because I noticed that every time I shop at the market the prices for items are different. I’m a family of six and I would buy items to sell back in the shop to feed my family and because the prices for items in the market fluctuates, sometimes I don’t make much sales. That time people don’t buy because it is expensive for them and they can’t afford to pay the price for an item when the price is high. What I would try to do though, is to help the customer to buy the items by just putting on $40 on the items so they can afford it. The other thing, when I do that I’m not making a profit, it affects my capital but I try to cope with it. Then there is spoilage and so I have to cater for. The prices for everything gone up in the market, for instance, the cost for a pound of plantain now is $240, a few months ago the cost per pound was $180. Then there is oil, a 1 litre bottle of oil cost $800 now, before the price for the same bottle of oil was $660. I don’t blame the government because the government is doing a good job. The government usually visits the Kuru Kuru area and we were able to share our opinions. The government is doing the road in here and has contributed a lot to my community, even helping the pensioners and many other things for us here in the community. So I won’t blame them for the rising cost of living. We just have to cope with the cost of living for now.”
Nickiera Parris said: “Everything gone up in the market and this is really tough on me. The price for plantains right now is expensive. Right now a pound of plantain is $240, before a pound of plantain cost $100 and something. When I buy something from the market this week, the next week when I go back to the market, the items get more expensive. Look at how the small bag of Karibee rice is sold for now. Right now a small bag of Karibee rice cost $1,800 and $2,000 some places, before it was sold for $1,300. These prices are really tough on me when buying items for my family. Well, so far the government is doing perfect. However, the government should work something out to reduce the prices that food items are sold for in the market. Even baby items expensive too. Things for the baby should be sold reasonable in the market. Right now $20,000 as grocery money is nothing to feed my family. The government should try to carry down the prices for baby items too.”
Carol Patterson, a 55-year-old bakery assistant said: “When people go in Georgetown to buy greens, the vendors add on more money on the items and we have to buy the items for that cost. Imagine some greens pass through Kuru Kuru to go in Georgetown to sell and the greens price is still expensive. Since the pandemic, the transportation cost from town to Kuru Kuru and vice versa raised to $400 and it stayed that way; it’s not dropping back. Before, I know I used to pay about $300 to travel to Georgetown from Kuru Kuru. Even butter expensive. Butter has been rising gradually in the market. I know before a pound of Golden Cream butter was $420, now the same butter cost about $600 a pound; Sterling products has risen a lot now. It started to rise gradually then just like that the prices for these products gone up sky high. Even things like plantains are sold expensive now. Two pounds of plantains now cost about $500, before a pound of plantain was $120. I stop use plantain now because that price is too expensive for me to purchase. The government need to subsidize on food so it can be affordable for the entire country. Also, the government need to place control prices on food items because if people’s salaries continue to raise, the vendors will continue to raise the prices that they are selling their items for in the market.”
Gavin Melvin, a 64-year-old general contractor said: “The cost of living is really hard for me and my family because things have gone up in the market a lot. You know I didn’t receive my $25,000 that the government was sharing per household here in Kuru Kuru. I really would like the government to look into this for me. I can’t feed my family, much less myself because the rice, flour, sugar, everything expensive in the market. The 8% that the government put on the people’s salary that can’t help us because the vendors are putting on that amount on their items in the market. I have one child going to school and I have to find about $8,000 for her when she’s going to school and I can’t afford it. I have to try any work I get to provide for my family at my age. I have big children. yes, but they can’t even help their family because the cost of living is high, they have to support their family. I can’t blame them. I would do farming to make ends meet, but still that money cannot do to provide for my family. A long boots for me is expensive now. The price per long boots now is $4,000. Before I could have gotten the long boots for $1900. Even shorts for me to wear is expensive. Before I could have bought 3 shorts for $1000, now I’m paying $1200 for one shorts. I would really like if the government could provide me with a proper job and to assist me to get tools to do woodworking.”
Emmanuel Simpson, a 39-year-old mason said: “I think the government should stop borrowing loan to build roads because our budget is already high. The government instead should focus more on the rising cost of living of the people. I know the cost of living is high throughout the world, but they should at least try to look into the prices the vendors are selling the items for in the marketplace. I work for a nice salary as a mason but still that can’t do to provide for my family because things are really high in the market. I have to stand the cost for my child to go to school and transportation cost from Yarrowkabra – you know transportation cost on the highway is not cheap. What I noticed is that on the highway there is not enough jobs for the people. The government should look into this for the people because things in the market is expensive. Right now a pound of chicken cost about $540. I know before the price per pound of chicken was $360. Everything gone up in the market, even rice gone up. A 10kg bag Karibee rice now is sold in the market for $2,100, a few months ago the price was $1,360. Even sugar expensive. The government should look into these high prices food items are sold for in the market.”
Akim Gordon Said: “The cost of living is very hard because as a partial owner of a supermarket, the control price on basic commodities have spiked. Well when the pandemic just started, the price on alcohol spiked but now, the only thing that I have not seen spiked, is alcohol. To maintain a certain percentage of markup on our product in the supermarket is challenging because consumers can’t afford it, so here at the supermarket we would try to sell at a cheap price both wholesale and retail compared to those retail shops in Yarrowkabra just to allow consumers to afford the items for their household. I mean, I do have expense to cover for the supermarket in which we do for the third quarter of the year. But, what I noticed is that business starts to pick up in the last quarters of the year, about October when sales gets heavy. Apart from that things are still expensive for us here in Yarrowkabra because things, for instance, plantain is expensive. Before a pound of plantain was $100 and something, now a pound of plantain is $300. All seafood right now is expensive. For example, the Banga Mary fish: before the price per pound was $80/$100, now that same pound of Banga Mary cost $500. I think the government should reduce the taxes for people, instead of subsidizing people’s money. Also, the government should implement more food education in schools, get the children more involve in agriculture in school so they can plant more because things are really expensive in this country. I mean for a large family, if they don’t budget properly it would be hard on them to afford certain thing in the market and taking into consideration the amount of earnings each household is receiving or how many of them are working in the household.”
Sattie Lall, a 67-year-old shop owner said: “It has been a month or two months now since a bag of sugar did not sell. On top of that, the school closed temporarily so the school children are not around to buy from the shop at the moment, until school reopens and I’m hardly making sales in the shop because of this. If the government can provide some kind of loan for me to mine more chicken that will be a great help to me. Right now I’m mining a couple of creole chickens and ducks but the feed is expensive to maintain them. Right now the feed cost about $6,000 or $7,000 a bag. I know before the price was about $1,000/$1,100 a bag for feed, things really get expensive in the market. I would have to sell pepper sauce to push my business when I’m not receiving sales from other items in my shop. The pepper sauce sales helps me to pay my utility bills. Transportation cost all expensive. A car from the Soesdyke Junction to Yarrowkabra right now cost $1,500, before I used to pay $1,000 to use the car for the same distance. The government is doing well. However, if they could create more jobs for the young people here in Yarrowkabra would be good. The government could consider building a factory here to create jobs for the people, especially for the young people in this community because the cost of living is really hard on everyone in this community.”
Avamaria Beaton, a 39-year-old single parent said: “Things are very expensive in the market. For instance, sugar gone up to $200 a pound, before that same pound of sugar was $100. I used to give my children Natura milk to drink but I had to stop because I’m not working anywhere and things are very expensive. Before the packet pound Natura milk cost about $450/$600, now that same pound pack cost about $800. Meat all expensive. A pound of chicken now is $500, before it was cheaper. I can’t say I’m buying salt fish because that too, is expensive. A bag of salted Banga Mary fish was $400 a few months back, now the cost for that same bag is $700. The father assist to maintain the children once in a while but things are so expensive that we end up eating once per day. One sack of rice have to do through the week for my children. The government should reduce the cost of living for single mothers, like me because I’m sickly too and if can at least the government can provide a job for me to take care of my children that will be good.”
Elvis Peters, a 41-year-old excavator operator said: “Everything gone up in the market. Before I used to use $20,000 for groceries to sustain my family, now I have to get about $40,000 to buy groceries to sustain my family. I used to work in Georgetown but now I’m working in my community, Yarrowkabra because transportation cost alone killing me to travel every day to Georgetown. The government need to place control prices on items in the market because vendors are selling food items for different prices. Also, the government should cushion the cost of living in a way to assist every household with something.”
Elvis Glayto, a 53-year-old coconut vendor said: “Things are very hard for me and my family here in Marudi because everything are expensive. Sometimes when I’m not doing well, I would go somewhere else to work just to provide for my family that consist of three persons. Everything is expensive. A pack of sausage cost $360 now, before the price was $300. Even plantain expensive. A pound of plantain before was $160, now a pound of plantain is $250. Even flour and a bag of bread is expensive. I noticed that the labour cost is not going up but the cost of living going up. I believe we have a rich country but I’m not seeing that, however I do also believe that things take time. The government should look into why labour cost is low and to do something about the rising cost of living.”
Youkomo Hunte, 41-year-old landscaper said: “The cost of living is really high in Marudi because every time you go into a shop the price for the commodity raises. This by itself is affecting me terrible because right now I’m looking for a job and I’m not finding any. And everything expensive here, flour, sugar, rice, etc. Everything expensive. The cost of a small bag of Karibee rice used to be about $1,500, now the same bag cost $2,200. Even a chainsaw expensive. When I went and price the chainsaw in the Chinese store a few days ago, I saw it for $36,000, when I went back recently to price it, I saw the price gone up to $50,000. I would like if the government could provide me with employment with all the structure they are putting up. This will do me good in providing for my family so I can cope with the rising cost of living.”
