My Neighborhood Watch #66 - Reporting Events Around us

With a very heavy heart, there's a big sigh and a question mark when it comes to the situation of my dear country, Nigeria. Statements like "There was once a country". Or questions like "Where are we going as a country, what happened to us"? I thought that the inflation was going to remain in America alone but the dry wind that came with the economic situation in Nigeria was severe.

Not only did the inflation cripple the economy, it choke what was left of it to a point where it's struggling to breathe. There's no one that's not affected at this point, including the unborn children who will have to come and witness such an era. Both the wealthy, the average Nigerian, the middle class, the poor and the wretched are all feeling it.

From the top of the ladder, we have trillions of debts owed to foreign countries and world banks, down to subsidies, insurgencies, terrorist attacks, disease outbreaks from fake products. Honestly, at this point Nigerians are just trying to find their personal happiness despite these situations.

Let's not even go into the main reason why life has become so hard in Nigeria. Hike in prices of items!!!
One day we woke up to our favourite items and food stuffs spiralling up without control. Food stuffs down to the cheapest most common food that everyone could afford was no longer within reach. Now the cheapest food was the most expensive food.

Even the middle class were now living like the poor even with management. Things aren't and will never be the same as it used to be months ago and frankly even after protesting for a better government, nothing much has been done to change the situation we find ourselves in.

Among the many things that has increased in this country, nothing is more disheartening than these 5 items I'm about to mention right now;

• Foodstuffs like rice, garri and spaghetti: It is no news that food is what keeps anybody alive, if this is taken away, what'll remain? Months ago, these 3 food items I listed we're sold for;

Rice	1 cup-200 naira
Garri	6 cups-500 naira
Spaghetti	500 naira

Now, these foods stuffs are sold for;

Rice	1 cup-700 naira
Garri	5 cups-1000 naira
Spaghetti	1500 naira

Crazy right?

• Shoes: I went to get my school shoes the other day and found out it wasn't the price it used to be.

Before	4000-5000 naira
Now	12,000-15,000 naira

• Attachments (braids and wig):
  It's very difficult to wear or make a good hair now because of the hike in hair prices.
  Before,

Braids	1700-2000 naira
Wigs	50,000-80,000 naira

Now,

Braids	4000-6000 naira
Wigs	130,000-200,000 naira

• Sachet water: "Water is life" is now suffocating.

Before	3 sachets-50 naira
Now	1 sachet-50 naira

Honestly, it is not easy living with or even surviving in this country anymore especially with the economic situation. There's a song that was produced almost 13 years ago that was targeted towards the economic situation of the country then.

A part of the lyrics a lot of people resonated with said _"Even if they sell a bag of rice for 7000, or a basket of tomatoes for 2000, the children of God will still survive"_

As funny as that sounded, then it wasn't as bad as it is now and so just like that song said, we will still survive regardless. We're Africans and we always find a way no matter what. Whether it is by adopting new management lifestyle or by adjusting our former way of living, I'll find a way.

I mean, I've been managing in school with a quite okay allowance, but now that things have changed, I have to take on multiple jobs alongside my allowance to stay afloat while incorporating financial discipline so I won't go broke fast.

About what is causing these difficulties, it is none other than bad governance, poor and selfish decisions by our leaders who are only interested in satisfying and fattening their own pockets without consideration for the masses.

It is inconsiderate leaders who have put us in these difficulties. Collecting more loans for unnecessary projects, increasing the taxes paid by citizens and still surcharging them on top while increasing subsidies are what put us in these difficulties.

I invite @basil20, @bossj23 and @okere-blessing

There's no place where they won't have economic challenges or difficulty, but compared to the fact that Nigerian as a developing country is having such plenty challenges, those other developed countries are way better.