Consumer complaints rise, as FCCPC repositions

…Receives 1000 complaints weekly

By Peter Egwuatu

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, FCCPC, has indicated that more Nigerians are now becoming active in bringing up issues of products and services failures for redress.

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Disclosing this at a media engagement in Lagos, Director General of FCCPC, Babatunde Irukera, said the Commission now receives average of about 1000 complaints every week compared to between 700 and 1000 received in a year before the recent repositioning of the Commission.

He stated: “People are sending us complaint against different things and it shows that people are now more aware of the organization. Beyond being aware of the organization, people have become more aware of their rights and they are demanding their rights and insisting more, though there is still more that we need to do.”

Irukera explained that the Commission would need the consumers’ willingness in bringing up complaints and insisting on their rights over products and services they pay for in order for the Commission to succeed in its mandate.

He also indicated that whistle blowing is part of what is needed from the public for effective consumer rights protection.

He said: “Just look at the number of companies that do business in   Nigeria.

How are we going to be doing spot checks and knowing what is going on everywhere? So we would work with whistle blowers. We have a business intelligence who when we receive information  we go, as was in the rice incidence in Uyo or shuting down stores in Lagos, it is because we have got credible intelligence information, if we have the intelligence information and if the information    is credible enough and actionable we proceed, and do   our work based on that.”

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In this connection Irukera said, “The  greatest challenge is getting the public to know they have rights and for them to be willing to enforce and insist on those rights and then after that is the industry recognizing that they must take the regulator very seriously and respect consumers rights.”

Vanguard

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