By Charles Okonji
Most Nigerians have welcomed the price slashing promise of the BUA Cement with sceptism.
Majority have said that they cannot be deceived any longer as this wasn’t the first time BUA has promised such, but only to do the opposite.
Recall that on September 15th 2023, the Chairman of BUA Cement Plc shocked Nigerians, after meeting President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in Aso Rock that he will reduce the price of his cement brand to about N3,000 by January 2024.
While some Nigerians are set to beat the drums for celebration, others are calling for caution given the antecedent of BUA Group in redeeming promises as the group made similar promise two years ago and failed.
One of the respondents Mr Babatunde Fehintolu opined that the BUA Cement boss has made multiple promises to reduce the price of his cement price only to increase the price of it few months after.
According to Fehintolu, Nigerians shouldn’t be carry away with sweet promise of Abdulsamad Raniu, because he has done same in the past without keeping them.
” The media was awash few days ago, after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had a meeting with the Chairman of BUA Group Alhaji Abdulsamad Rabiu, where the later is quoted to have promised to crash the price of his cement brand from about the current N5,000 to about N3,000 beginning from January 2024.
“I will not be carry away by that promise until he proves me wrong. He has deceived Nigerians many times so I will wait and see before I will believe him” he stated.
His view is shared by a major cement seller in Korodu who while speaking with media recently said the BUA Group boss is playing to the gallery after meeting with the president, he just wants to says what Mr President will like to hear.
“Why do some of us like to play games with us?. In 2021 he promised to reduced the price of cement few weeks after the price went up. I can still remember in 2021, price of cement was sold for about N3,500 per bag, the BUA Cement boss said the price of his brand can fall by some 40 percent to about N2,200 if there is an increase in capacity and production.”
He said stronger competition and opening up of the sector to more players as well as imports will crash the price of the commodity.
It would be recalled that the BUA Group boss in an interview with a journalists, said: “The price of cement is high in Nigeria, simply because we don’t have enough supply.”
That is the simple answer, a reflection of economics on the theory of the laws of supply and demand,” the industrialist stressed.
Speaking with a Cement dealer in Kano, Abdullahi Mohammed, the story is different as he simply dismissed the promise, saying that he BUA Chairman wanted to score a cheap political goal.
He noted that if there would ever be a price reduction in BUA Cement brand, it would be a magic, adding that with the current level of inflation affecting every commodity, Rabiu was not sincere.
On his part, another dealer, Adewale Afolabi who spoke to our correspondent in Oshogbo stated the promise should be treated as a campaign promise that can never be fulfilled once elections are over.
Afolabi pointed out that the Rabiu has made numerous promises in the past and failed, advising that Nigerians should not take him serious.
However, to Dr. Kester Okeogene, an economic analyst, reduction in food prices is what Nigerians need most, not a political deception.
Okeogene pointed out that the BUA Chief Executive has not mentioned anything concerning escalating prices of his food prices irrespective of the untold hunger ravaging the land.
The Economist who described Rabiu’s promise as hypocritical stated, “BUA Foods Plc, has recorded growth in its Profit after tax by 142 percent to N95. 2 billion in unaudited results for the half-year ended June 30, 2023. The food company’s Profit before tax increased significantly by 156 per cent to N109.4 billion as against N42 billion.”
He said, if he had meant well for the country, he could have considered crashing the price of flour, spaghetti, noodles and others, adding that majority Nigerians hungry as cement price does not matter to them.
