Interviews and photos by
Subhana Shiwmangal
Stabroek News on Thursday spoke to members of the public about the rising cost of living and how it is affecting them. Their comments follow:
Simone Phillips
Simone Phillips, fruits and provision vendor: `The cost of living is very high because everything gone up such as the groceries, fruits, vegetables; things that you used to pay like $200 for, you pay $500, if possible $600 now. Plantain that’s growing right here is extremely high since I buy it for $170 a lb wholesale, and sell it back for $240 a lb to make a little profit. Sometimes the people don’t want to buy it because it is so expensive for them. Also, the apple and grapes, everything gone up. I feel it for the single parents who depends on their salaries alone and don’t have any alternative, it really affecting them. Another thing is the government need to raise the public servant salary, so that they can live above poverty level. People really suffering in this country, you and I won’t feel it so but other people would. I feel the government should look into it, and do something.’
Pamela Johnson
Pamela Johnson who sells shopping bags outside of Bounty said: ”Cost of living gone up so high that you can’t afford to buy like chicken, eggs; etc. Cost of living remains the same way because the government isn’t doing anything to help poor people. And I need them to look in, look in, understand, and see what we going through. Thank you.’
Patricia Croft
Patricia Croft, greens vendor: `Well right now everything is up and the little money that we used to come with and sell, it cannot do. I’m glad if the government could look into it, and help us out, the vendors. Give us some kind of money and help us because everything expensive. A pound of ochro is $200, when we done, we are going to sell it for $250 lb. A 10-lb pumpkin is for $15000, if you come out with a $10,000 you cannot buy any pumpkin. You gon able to buy a one or two. I’m glad if the government could look in to it, and assist the vendors with some kind of money. When buyers see how pumpkin was sold for $100 and $200 a piece in the past, and compare it to our current prices, $500, $400, $300, and $360 a piece, they crying too, since the cost of living is so high. …Just like that everything stay and rise. A pound of celery is $2000 and celery $100 each for the small bundles, some buyers pick it up and throw it down back. Everything gone up, it really hard on us.’
Davi Dharamdat
Davi Dharamdat: `Mostly like the greens and the meat high… A lot of people can’t really buy because the cost of living is high. I think they should drop the price but on the other hand the government is not getting the livestock because then the price wouldn’t be so high. I think they could drop their price because everyone feeling the squeeze since the past 3 months everything expensive’.
Nicola Primo
Nicola Primo: `Yes indeed the cost of living is high and it is a strain on single parents especially. Every day something going up so we have to try our best with the cost of living. Vegetables prices raised tremendously in the market since a few months back since… a piece of pumpkin was $200 a piece, now it is like $600 for that same piece of pumpkin. Right now you could hardly eat greens, you have to focus on eating everything else other than greens. The government should implement some system so the cost of living can go down.’
Wilson Henry
Wilson Henry, a bus driver: `This cost of living is ridiculous, it is affecting everybody. The government has to do something to reduce the cost of living. The cost of our basic commodities high, for instance oil moved from $300 something and gone to approximately $750. Also, beef was $300 a lb now the price is $600 a lb and for the past two months is was like that. Everything is high, if a persons have a family of 3, it is extremely hard for them. The Government should do something to reduce this cost of living. I’m thankful the gas price dropped but we need the commodity price to drop as well. The bus union could raise driver’s fare by $10 and $20. The Government giving the fishermen half a million dollars, they gave the cane cutters so much money. They’re not giving the public servant nothing, the government can’t starve the public servant from pay. They said they are going to give the public servant $25,000, public servant don’t know when they are going to get that again, let them get it on a monthly basis, why is the government starving the public servants their pay. That is wrong.’
B Sankar
B Sankar: `The cost of living affects me. When you are working roughly for a $100,000 a month, and when you take out the threshold, you have $80, 000 left, then you have to pay light bill, electricity bill, and you have 5 or 4 children going to school; you are in the pressure. The Government has to do something about the VAT/tax because we are paying about 28% or 32 % in taxes. Also, when you are finished paying tax when you work, you still have to pay an additional 14% when you go to the shop. Since the pandemic I’m in this squeeze but I’m still trying to make ends meet. You working but some months you run tight, you might have to borrow from a friend or borrow from your work place to carry you through the month. Every time the month finishes you have to start borrowing again.’
Marian Dodson
Marian Dodson from Marian’s Chip Stand: `There has been an increase in price, for instance, sugar gone up $200 lb, everything gone up in the market. Today you pay one price, tomorrow you pay another price. The whole thing just messed up because we have children to send to school, every day the fare rising. Well I see the gas dropped back but everything in the whole just gone up every day, and salary hasn’t risen. I can’t really raise my price and then the market has a shortage of the items I usually sell. For example, Xcel was $3700 a case, now its $4000 a case. Fruta scarce, Guzzler scarce. When you pay the extra money, I’m not making anything. The prices in the market just rising every day’.
Diana Persaud
Diana Persaud: `My husband and I are public servants, we have a child that is disabled and normally we feed him fluid. We both buy canned stuff because cost of fruits and vegetables have risen in the market. The Government should raise the public servants salary so these things can be affordable.’
June Seaford
June Seaford, a public servant: ”It’s not really affecting me but I know it’s affecting those persons who have a lot of children. After close discussion with my friend in reference to a single person compared to a family, the family will be affected more. For instance, I could buy a $100 boulanger but a family can’t buy it since they will have to purchase more. To me now the prices are going down a little but 2-3 months ago or even couple weeks ago, it was very high. Ochro – 2 lbs for $500 and these stuff. The Government should raise public servant salary because we can’t go in the market with $5,000 now and get a whole big supply of groceries. So by the Government raising public servant salary they will have a good enough amount to go and still have some to save.’
