Business
Protecting Nigerian Consumers From Substandard Goods, Services
Arguably, safeguarding the right of the citizenry against substandard products is the primary motive behind the government’s establishment of standards’ control agencies.
The government’s action is, perhaps, informed by media reports indicating that the production of substandard products have led to the deprivation of the consumer’s rights and the death of several persons.
Rights activists also argue that consumer rights are important aspects of human rights, which are aimed at protecting the people’s right to have access to quality goods and services.
They say that the public awareness of consumer rights will invariably save consumers from aberrations such as outright deception, unfair trade practices and deceptive advertising, among others.
It is, therefore, not surprising when the former Director-General of the Consumer Protection Council (CPC), Mrs Ifeyinwa Umenyi, described consumers as a fundamental part of the nation’s body polity and economy.
Apparently aware of such viewpoints, the Federal Government has been resolute in its decision to protect Nigerian consumers from substandard products and services.
As part of efforts to protect Nigerian consumers from inferior goods and services, the Federal Government established the CPC in 1992 and empowered it to look after the interests of consumers.
The CPC, which commenced operations in 1999, has since been striving to fulfil the mandate via varying strategies.
For instance, the council’s officials recently carried out several market raids, routine market inspections, goods’ confiscation, while prosecuting marketers of some substandard wares; all in an effort to uphold the consumers’ rights.
The high-point of the exercise, which took place late last year, was the confiscation of some sub-standard medical equipment hidden in a residential area in Karu, FCT.
Speaking on that particular raid, Umenyi said that the council officials seized solo-shot syringes packed in 310 cartons that had been exposed to sun, rain, dust and other participles.
She said that the purity of the products, which were largely used at the primary health care level for immunisation, was seriously in doubt.
In one of her final engagements before she left the council, Umenyi urged consumers to be vigilant when making purchases, adding that they should always report the circulation of suspicious products to the council.
Besides, Mr Sham Kolo, CPC’s Head of Surveillance and Enforcement, said that a bakery was sealed for using fake labels.
He added that the bakery also operated under unhygienic conditions.
“The environment is too dirty for such business and they are using two labels and packages, which belong to other popular brands, to sell their products.
“They are giving misleading information to the public and from our surveillance; we discovered that most of their products go to schools,’’ he said.
During the same exercise, the council also sealed the a bakery in Dutse-Alhaji, a suburb of Abuja, and an NNPC franchise outlet at Jiwa, near Deidei, in the FCT for alleged inappropriate transactions.
Kolo alleged that the fuel station usually dispensed 17.8 litres of fuel anytime a customer bought 20 litres of fuel, adding that its customers were thereby shortchanged.
He claimed that the only fuel pump at the station that was somewhat normal was not used in selling fuel to customers.
However, the station’s Manager, Mr Sam Odo, claimed that he was not aware of the development.
“We have an engineer who sets the pump; so, I don’t know anything about it,’’ he said.
A taxi-driver, Mr Sunday Okafor, said that although he bought petrol at the station on a daily basis, he never noticed the alleged aberration.
As part of efforts to create public awareness and educate the public on how to detect inappropriate transactions, the CPC recently launched the Products and Services Listing and Monitoring Programme (ProServe) to check the prevalence of substandard products and services.
Speaking at the programme’s inauguration in Abuja, Umenyi said that the absence of a databank for products and services was being exploited by some dubious businessmen.
She said that ProServe was designed to protect consumers, while ensuring that they were well-informed about the various products available to them.
Umenyi said that this had become necessary because manufacturers and service providers were more concerned about their commercial messages rather than the education of consumers.
“ProServe is, therefore, designed to introduce a listing regime that will require all genuine manufacturers and certified service providers in all sectors of the economy to enlist their products and services for proper monitoring,’’ she said.
Applauding the initiative, the First Lady, Mrs Patience Jonathan, said that ProServe was a quality-control mechanism designed to eliminate counterfeiting by some “get-rich-quick’’ businessmen.
Represented by Mrs Zainab Maina, the Minister of Women Affairs, Jonathan noted that any infringement on the rights of consumers would affect the general welfare of Nigerians and the economy.
“Consumers should also ensure that the products and services they purchase are listed with ProServe,’’ she said.
Commending the council’s effort, Chief Anyim Pius Anyim, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), said that countries which wanted their products to compete in the global market must necessarily measure up to the set standards.
The SGS, who was represented by Dr Henry Akpan, the Permanent Secretary, Office of the SGF, said that ProServe was a laudable project, as it dealt with information on goods and services.
Anyim noted that the Federal Government was worried about the influx of substandard products into the Nigerian market and was eager to check the situation.
Sharing similar sentiments, Dr Olusegun Aganga, the Minister of Trade and Investment, said that the programme would instill consumers’ confidence in local goods.
The minister stressed that such confidence would boost the citizens’ patronage of local products, while creating jobs.
Besides, consumers deserved to have access to the necessary information about the products they were buying, he added.
As part of strategies put in place to protect consumers’ rights, the council has also urged operators of supermarkets to establish complaints redress desks in their shops to handle customers’ grievances.
Nevertheless, observers are of the view that the council is not proactive enough in its crusade against substandard products and services in the country.
They urge the new Director-General of the CPC, Mr Emmanuel Amlai, to initiate a sustained enlightenment of consumers so as to enable them to identify substandard products on time.
Chijioke Okoronkwo, is of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
Chijioke Okoronkwo
Business
Food Vendors, Others Relocate To New Site At PH Airport
The raging controversy between the Port Harcourt International Airport Management and restaurants/canteen operators and theirallies over relocation has been brought under control, as the operators have commenced relocation to their structures at the new site.
Recall that there had been serious feud over a directive by the Manager of the airport, Mr. Michael Area, for food vendors and their allies to relocate to the new site.
They insisted that the new site was too distant and hence, would negatively affect patronage from customers, with possible loss.
They further also insisted that it wouldcost them much money to put up another structure, given the economic situation in the country, since the airport management did not build any structure for them, apart from providing the empty land they have to also pay for.
The situation had led to flexing of muscles, which made the Airport Manager to order for sealing of all shops, resulting in scarcity of food, as airport users could not find a place to eat, apart from the only Genesis fast food spot available.
As at last Friday, The Tide observed that most of the food vendors had transferred their structures to the new place, and had started doing business there already.
Meanwhile, customers have started settling down at the new location as they were seen patronising shops for foods and drinks, in spite of the distance.
Few of the remaining structures at the old site, The Tide further gathered, will also be removed as quickly as possible, and the owners are making efforts to get funds for the job to be done.
One of them, Mrs Aka Love explained that she was going to relocate to the new place before the end of March.
Currently, business activities at the old site have come to null, as the place which was usually a beehive of food, drinks and relaxation, has completely winded down.
By: Corlins Walter
Business
MOWCA Strengthens Maritime Crime Prevention
Secretary General of the Maritime Organisation of West and Central Africa (MOWCA), Dr. Paul Adalikwu, has stepped up interaction with the United States Government to lift restrictions placed on some member countries allegedly implicated in illicit shipping activities.
Adalikwu, who led a delegation from the MOWCA Secretariat to the US Embassy in Abidjan for a first leg of the strategic consultation aimed at promoting seamless participation of MOWCA countries in international trade within the global maritime space, reiterated the organisation’s commitment to the best ethical and lawful maritime practices.
Addressing the U.S Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire, H.E Mrs Jessica Davis Ba, the MOWCA SG stated the organisation’s interest in promoting the International Ship and Port facility Security (ISPS) code which aims at enhancing security of vessels and their ports of call.
He expressed the commitment of MOWCA in promoting environmentally friendly, safe and cost effective shipping without any encumbrance that may limit the economic potential of member countries.
Dr Adalikwu recalled that at the instance of the U.S. Department of State invitation, MOWCA participated in the 2023 Registry Information Sharing Compact (RISC) Conference in Larnaca, Cyprus, on February 28–March 1, 2023, and a virtual meeting held on June 6 2023, with Mrs Jennifer Chalmers, Officer in change of Counterproliferation Initiative.
He recalled The U.S. DOS willingness to support MOWCA’s effort for preventive maritime security through the establishment of the Center for Information and Communication (CINFOCOM) with the aim to ensure a maritime situational awareness domain within MOWCA’s member states’ waters.
He added that MOWCA under his watch is committed to training and retraining of maritime practitioners and experts to enhance the human capital capabilities of member states.
The CINFOCOM will help prevent transnational crimes committed at sea like sanctions evasion by North Korea and other state actors, who exploit poor enforcement due diligence by ship open registries to circumvent United Nations and U.S. trade restrictions.
By: Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos
Business
Nigeria’s Public Debt Hits N97.3trn – DMO
The Debt Management Office (DMO) has hinted that Nigeria’s public debt increased by 10.7 per cent from N87.87 trillion in the third quarter of last year, to N97.34 trillion as at December 31, 2023.
DMO, in an update data released last Friday, said the increase in the debt stock was largely due to new domestic borrowing by the Federal Government to part finance the deficit in the 2024 Appropriation Act and disbursements by multilateral and bilateral lenders.
The office noted that the N97.3 trillion public debt comprises of domestic debt of N59.12 trillion and external debt of N38.22 trillion. The sum of $3.5 billion was used to service external debt during the review period.
“Nigeria’s Public Debt Stock as at December 31, 2023 was N97.34trillion or $108.229 billion. This amount comprises the domestic and external debt stocks of the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN), the 36 States Governments, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
“There was an increase of N9.43 trillion over the comparative figure for September, 2023, which was largely due to new domestic borrowing by the FGN to part finance the deficit in the 2024 Appropriation Act and disbursements by multilateral and bilateral lenders.
“At N59.12 trillion, total domestic debt accounted for 61 percent of the total public debt stock, while external debt at N38.22 trillion accounted for the balance of 39 percent.
“Consistent with the debt management strategy, Nigeria’s external debt stock was skewed in favour of loans from multilateral (49.77 percent) and bilateral lenders (14.02 percent) or total of 63.79 percent which are mostly concessional and semi-concessional.
“Whilst the DMO continues to employ best practice in public debt management, the recent and on-going efforts of the fiscal authorities to shore up revenue will support debt sustainability”, DMO stated.
By: Corlins Walter
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