Guardian

The Consumer Protection Council was established 13 years ago to among others protect the rights of consumers. Since its inception, the agency has been battling to fulfill its mandate, albeit on a relative low profile. Mrs. Ify Umenyi, the Director-General of the agency spoke with ROSELINE OKERE on the imperativeness of consumer protection, especially in relation to economic growth and development. Excerpts.

IS there any policy on ground that protects the rights of consumers?

Our efforts in safeguarding the interests of Nigerian consumers are being hampered by the absence of a clear-cut policy on consumer protection.

This has made it possible for firms to cheat Nigerians.

Aside this lapse, that the agency is also suffering from the problem of improper structure, as well as especially with lack of take-off grant for its operations. Relevant agencies are not willing to accommodate the agency in their yearly budgetary provisions.

The absence of these fundamental requirements has made it difficult for Nigerians to feel the impact of the agency as much as they should 13 years after.

The current administration of the agency has resolved to uplift CPC from its obscure position, using its limited resources, through the innovative execution of its policies and programmes.

So far, the agency has been able to establish offices in the country’s six geo-political zones, as well as in the Federal Capital territory.

We have also been able to establish six zonal offices, opened market desks, created awareness on the rights and responsibilities of the consumers and also infused the rights of the consumer into primary and junior secondary school curriculum.

CPC under this dispensation has also executed surveillance and enforcement operations in different markets as well as the successful prosecution of offenders in Kano, Lagos, Zaria and Kaduna.

We have successful resolution of hundreds of thousands of consumer complaints; conducting of quality tests and analysis, introduction of products and services listing and monitoring programmes, as well as collaboration with sector regulators and national standard bodies.

The agency believes that virile protection regime is a catalyst for economic growth and holds irresistible attraction for foreign investors because it promotes genuine businesses, thus sustaining existing employment and creating new ones.

It also encourages businesses to adopt best practices for efficiency and higher productivity, leading to the provision of a greater choice of products at lower prices, thereby enhancing the quality of available products and services, healthy competition and creating consumer confidence, which ultimately drives the economy.

To assist the agency achieve its objectives, there should be entrenchment of consumer protection as an essential component of the country’s national trade and industrial policy, enactment of robust legislation on competition and consumer protection or the proposed bill on federal competition and consumer protection commission by the National Assembly, as well as, the enhanced funding for the effective discharge of the council’s responsibilities.

What are really the functions of consumer protection council?

Providing speedy redress to consumers complaints through negotiation, mediation and conciliation; seeking ways and means of removing from the markets hazardous products and causing offenders to replace such products with safer and more appropriate alternatives; publishing from time to time list of products whose consumption and sale have been banned, withdrawn, severally restricted or not approved by the Federal Government; causing an offending company, firm, trade association or individual to protect, compensate, provide relief and safeguards to injured consumers or communities from adverse effects of technologies that are inherently harmful, injurious, violent or highly hazardous; organising and undertaking campaigns and other forms of activities that will lead to increased public consumer awareness; encouraging trade, industry and professional associations to develop and enforce in their various fields, quality standards designed to safeguard the interest of consumers; issuing guidelines to manufacturers, importers, dealers and wholesalers in relation to their obligation under the CPC enabling law; encouraging the formation of voluntary consumer groups or associations for consumers’ well being; ensuring that consumers’ interest receive due consideration at appropriate fora and providing redress to obnoxious practices or the unscrupulous exploitation of consumers by companies, firms, trade associations or individuals.

Would you say the agency is fulfilling its mandate?

Our mandate requires us to, among others, eliminate hazardous products from the market, provide speedy redress to consumers complaints, undertake campaigns as will lead to increased consumers’ awareness, ensure that consumers interest receive due consideration at the appropriate forum, and encourage trade, industry and professional associations to develop and enforce in their various fields quality standards designed to safeguard the interest of consumers.

While using all legitimate means to eliminate the scourge of consumer rights abuse in the Nigerian market place, we are conscious of the fact that an uninformed consumer population cannot be effectively protected if they do not know that they have rights, what the rights are, and how the rights could be protected. Businesses also need to be well acquainted with their obligations to consumers.

In view of all these, we are currently doing the best we can to effectively police the market, sensitise consumers to their rights and responsibilities and at the same time ensure that businesses are committed to fulfilling their obligations to consumers.

It is our hope that with the co-operation of all market players, our country will become a better consumer-friendly nation.

What is the importance of the bill before National Assembly on the right of the consumers?

The proposed amendment of the Council’s Act is not a threat to genuine businesses and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

The intent of the amendment is to further support genuine producers and service providers, while making the environment unfriendly to counterfeiters and fakers of genuine products.

Our amendment bill should not scare genuine producers and service providers. The essence of consumer protection is to, among others, ensure choice for consumers, which can only be provided by the multiplicity of genuine businesses.

It is in our interest and those of consumers to ensure that genuine businesses are sustained. Our commitment is to work with genuine producers and service providers to safeguard Nigerian consumers.

We will always be willing to collaborate with genuine businesses to flush out unscrupulous businessmen undermining the growth of the nation’s economy and consumers right to quality goods and services.

What are the different techniques your agency has adopted in the fight against substandard goods in the country?

CPC has devised new method of fighting quackery and counterfeit in the country. The council has concluded plans to introduce products and services monitoring and registration scheme known as ProServe, which is aimed at eliminating counterfeiting and quackery in Nigeria.

The programme is aimed at enhancing traceability of products and services in order to checkmate substandard and poor services.

The agency, in addition to its existing efforts towards tackling consumer abuses in Nigeria, is taking a more aggressive and proactive step to substantially minimise fake and substandard products and services.

CPC is also set to facilitate fair trading and improve protection of Nigerian consumers who often pay for goods and services that do not yield expected utility. Apart from this, Proserve will also provide added services to businesses by utilising state of the art technology to publish periodic consumer guide in both paper and electronic forms.

On a general note, what is your assessment of the Nigeria economy? Would you say that the economy is improving?

As acknowledged globally, the biggest challenge confronting the developing world today, including Nigeria is the abject poverty that deprives a large section of the population a dignified life. Past and successive administrations have continued to make attempts at reducing poverty and to empower the poor by providing them with productive employment and increasing their access to land, capital and other productive resources. In furtherance of this objective, Nigeria also embraced globalisation, thereby integrating our national economy into a globally interdependent economy.

A virile consumer protection regime is a catalyst for economic growth and an irresistible attraction for foreign investors because it promotes genuine business, sustains existing employment and creates new ones, beside encouraging businesses to adopt best practices for efficiency and higher productivity. It also leads to the provision of a greater choice of products healthy competition, and creates consumer confidence, which ultimately drives the national economy, among others.

There three new regulations- consumer protection from unfair commercial practices regulations; consumer complaints redress regulations, and price making regulations have been added to the existing ones, which would help in sanitising the market.

The introduction of the products and services listing and monitoring programme was to help consumers and ensure they are well informed about the various products and services available to them.

Providing consumers with databank for products and services was necessary to further check sub-standard products and services in the Nigerian market, she maintained that CPC does not need to obtain permission from any quarters before destroying products considered fake, adding that guidelines have been given to industries and professional bodies to ensure quality standards designed to safeguard consumers.

What is the agency doing to protect consumers in the oil and gas sector with reports of under dispensing of fuel or sales of substandard lubricants?

From time to time, our men go round filling stations to ensure that the marketers are not under dispensing or cheating the consumer.  On several occasions, we have had to seal up some stations, which were found to be cheating the consumers.  We will not relent on our effort to ensure that the right of the consumer is protected.

Nigerians are beginning to assert their rights and operate more confidently in the marketplace, owing to the council’s sustained consumer awareness campaign. Also, the council has successfully resolved hundreds of thousands of consumer complaints, and routinely undertakes surveillance and enforcement operations in Nigerian markets.

These activities are gradually being taken to the grassroots through the opening of seven additional offices and the introduction of several interventionist programmes.

Most topical among its programmes is the on-going effort to, in conjunction with relevant agencies, ensures the introduction of consumer education in the curriculum of primary and secondary schools in Nigeria, with effect from the next academic session. In addition, the council is working assiduously to commence a product and service monitoring and registration programme known as ProServe. This is aimed at creating a data bank of products and services for easy monitoring. All these are being combined with the push by the council to get its enabling law amended with a view to bringing it up-to-date with modern market trends.

Our vision is to be a dynamic, effective and responsible apex consumer protection agency of the Federal Government of Nigeria, championing the cause of fully sensitized consumers to achieve a caring and consumer-friendly community.

We are committed to protecting and enhancing consumers’ interest through information, education and enforcement of appropriate standards for goods and services and to promote an environment of fair and ethical trade practices.