In about a couple of days, the Muslim faithful will be celebrating the Eidu al Adha in commemoration of the act of devout faithfulness of Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) to God. According to the Quran, Prophet Ibrahim had invoked God for a Son and promised to sacrifice the child for God when it becomes of age. His prayer was granted as God blessed him with a beautiful lad, Ismael. However, while the Prophet was on the verge of fulfilling his own end of the bargain, God took mercy on him and ordered that the child be substituted with a Ram for the sacrifice. This historic moment became an important frame of reference and tradition in Islam.
According to The Cable Nigeria, on 29 June 2022, the Sultan of Sokoto and leader of all Muslims in Nigeria had declared Saturday, 9 July 2022 as the Eid Adah day. The said date syncs with the tenth day of the twelfth month (zul-hijjah) of the Islamic Calendar.
Following the Sultan’s declaration, one would expect to see Muslims in their multitudes to set the atmosphere in the heat of fanfare by going all out to get their rams and flaunting them in their respective sizes, shapes and colours. However, many decry the current market price of ram and the general inflationary state of the nation’s economy.
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The Nigerian Daily trust reported that the price of rams have shot up to between 70 and 100 percent in most parts of the country. For instance, the medium-sized ram which sold for 30,000 Naira or thereabout in 2019 and 2020 now sells for 50,000 Naira or more, while the large-size ram of 250,000 Naira has gone up to 400,000 Naira within the same periods.
Across the country, sellers complain of low turn up from buyers, though some of them admit that a large number of the buyers must be really distressed due to the increasing market price inflation in the country. Our analyst took a survey of Bodija market in Ibadan. The results were revealing.
‘’We have customers complain about high price of ram, but the feeling is mutual’’ argues Ahmad, a Ram trader at Kara, Bodja market in Ibadan. He stated that inflation, insecurity and fuel scarcity among other factors have contributed to the cost of getting those livestock into the market for the end-users. The problem is more complicated in the south due to hassles in the supply chain that have emanated from fuel scarcity and its attendant effect on the cost of transporting the livestock from the North. ‘’No one prays to make a loss’’ Ahmad says defensively.
It is customary of many Muslim households to get their Rams few weeks into the festive day when demand is expectantly on its anabolic level. However, this period, most households seem to look forward to the early hours of the D day to buy their rams when they expect the market should have crest-fallen. This bearish approach to the market has become a commonplace coping-skill during Eid Celebration in Nigeria.
Adeyanju, a University student and resident in Ibadan recalls his childhood memories, when the Salah season was always a period to look up to due to the feeling of mild effervescence he used to get from the ambience of the period. He stated thus;
There was a particular period where we got a stunningly beautiful and sociable Ram. Everyone in the house took a liking to this animal. It was such an adorable white thing that I developed an unusual emotional bond with it. My father was not an exception in this love affair, so we had to prevail on him to get another Ram for the festival and we got to keep the other for a pet.
But nowadays, how many fathers can be that generous to such emotional cravings of their young ones? The current state of the economy has really ruined a lot of things about our social and cultural lives.’’
Like Adeyanju, many Nigerian Muslims complain of increasingly bland festive periods due to economic hardship. The Nigerian Government should draw inspiration from the story of Prophet Ibrahim to spur up their willingness and efforts towards fulfilling their covenant to ensure the happiness of the greater number of people in the country.