Babatunde Irukera, executive vice chairman of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) says industries are under obligation to improve on their responsiveness to consumer’s complaints and dissatisfaction at any point in time and anywhere.
He said this while speaking to journalists on Thursday at a collaborative engagement forum to review and analyse the state of the market and what lies ahead where he mentioned that citizens have rights to be heard and prioritised, especially as they have developed loyalty to the brands overtime
“We need to get to a point where businesses recognise their obligations and understand that responsiveness is an important fundamental in business activities. It is not right that the commission even as a government agency is easier to access and is more responsive to consumers that are dissatisfied than companies,” he said.
According to him, consumers were still battling the impact of COVID-19 which has been aggravated by other issues such as the ongoing crisis between Russia and Ukraine, consequently the prices of products and services have been surging far above their purchasing power.
As a result, this has caused the commission to be more attentive to businesses in order to avoid consumer exploitation and dissatisfaction in line with its mandate of protecting consumer interest.
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“We are trying to strike a balance where everyone should compete fiercely for patronage; we will continue to encourage businesses and show understanding but not to the detriment of ethical practices or waiver of the law,” he said.
He revealed that many individuals and organisations were being currently prosecuted by the commission for different offences bordering on consumers’ rights.
Irukera revealed that the commission’s consumer protection activities cuts across various sectors where they have actively established their presence and the need to ensure that companies are committed to providing quality services.
Speaking on the activities of the FCCPC across various sectors, he highlighted the issue of digital lending services that functioned in a manner that negates consumer protection and satisfaction.
Irukera said that the digital lending platforms have between 70 and 90 applications on apple and google play-store while they operate in no less than 12 locations, adding that engagements are ongoing to delete these applications and also uncover their hideouts.
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