NOA warns against hoarding food items during Ramadan and Lent
National Orientation Agency (NOA) Director General Lanre Issa-Onilu issued a strong advisory against traders hoarding and inflating prices of essential food items during Ramadan and Lent. Reports indicate deliberate withholding of staples like rice, flour, and cooking oil to create artificial scarcity and drive up costs, harming vulnerable Nigerians. Issa-Onilu called such practices economically disruptive and morally indefensible during a sacred period emphasizing compassion and charity. The NOA urged market operators to uphold fairness, transparency, and moderation in pricing as patriotic duty and religious obligation. Trade associations and regulatory bodies were called to enforce ethical standards. The Agency committed to nationwide sensitisation campaigns promoting economic responsibility and national cohesion.