SON Decries Fake Products Imports

The Standard Organisation
of Nigeria (SON), a regulatory body  superintending the prevention of importation of substandard  goods into the country, has  decried the continuous importation of such goods  into Nigeria.
In a statement on Monday, the Acting Director General, SON, Dr Paul Angya, said that the country has not done what it needs to do to prevent dumping of substandard products, especially from China into Nigeria.
Angya said that it is never the role of the regulatory body to prevent dumping because SON is not in control  of the importation policy having not  been at the seaports to check  such  products coming into the country.
The Acting DG said that the country has the standard and rules before any goods enter the country but the agency cannot go a step further and say this product cannot come into Nigeria because  SON is not  at the entry  point to prevent such products from coming  into  the country.
He said that the organization is trying to come out with a policy statement and measures  to prevent  the Chinese government  from continuing  exporting some substandard goods  and products to the country.
He  urged the federal government take  proactive and aggressive  steps against this trade on substandard products  from the Chinese in order to stem the inflow of substandard products in Nigeria.
He said that substandard products are choking legitimate investments thereby frustrating the genuine efforts of the manufacturing sector and killing industries.
He urged  the Federal government to ban some  products coming into the country and  even  criminalise such  products, allow SON at  seaports otherwise  these products  would  continue to find their way into the country.
The Acting DG stressed that SON is under staffed with a staff strength  of 1500 personnel, adding that the organisation needs a lot  of staff to effectively monitor  the importation of substandard  goods and equally be at the nation’s seaports.
He, however, restated that SON has the standard and skill even with the limited manpower at its  disposal and called on the government  to  strategically  position SON to checkmate further circulation of substandard  products  considered as investment  killers in the country.

Philip Okparaji