Authorities urged to tackle post-cyclone price gouging in Arakan State

By Admin 16 May 2023

DMG Newsroom
16 May 2023, Sittwe

Local people in cyclone-hit areas of Arakan State have called on authorities to effectively handle price gouging of necessities in the aftermath of Cyclone Mocha.

The prices of basic foodstuffs and other goods including building materials and fuel have in some cases doubled following the cyclone, which made landfall near Sittwe on Sunday.

“Commodity prices have surged in the aftermath of the storm. For example, the price of a 20-litre water jug has shot up from 600 kyats to 1,500 kyats, which is unacceptable,” said a Sittwe resident.

Many houses, schools, hospitals and religious buildings were damaged by Cyclone Mocha in Sittwe, Rathedaung, Ponnagyun, Kyauktaw, Mrauk-U and Minbya townships, and people urgently need humanitarian assistance.

A female resident of Mrauk-U Township said: “Authorities should effectively handle price gouging. People are having troubles, and it is saddening to see that goods are being sold at higher prices under such circumstances.”

Because many buildings were damaged in the storm, demand for building materials has surged, and prices have subsequently increased.

DMG reached out to Arakan State Administration Council spokesman U Hla Thein to ask about the regime’s plan to curb increasing commodity prices in Arakan State, but he declined to answer, saying he was in a meeting.

Meanwhile, the Arakan Army (AA) has urged sellers of basic foodstuffs and other commodities not to take advantage of the troubles people are suffering.

“I would like to ask merchants who trade basic foodstuffs and other goods not to take advantage of the hard times people are going through,” AA chief Twan Mrat Naing said in a speech to the people of Arakan State about relief efforts in the aftermath of the storm.

Some cyclone-affected populations are desperately short of medicines while transportation infrastructure has been badly damaged by the storm. Disruptions to phone and internet services have also been widespread.

Hundreds of people are believed to have been killed by Cyclone Mocha in Arakan State, though an exact casualty figure has yet to be reported.