KARACHI: Need for consumer protection laws strongly stressed
KARACHI, March 28: The profiteer and hoarder mafia is cheating and fleecing consumers through artificial price hikes, substandard and adulterated goods and shoddy services, while the government has failed to make strong laws and even fully implement the available ones on consumer rights.
It is high time that all stakeholders including the government, private sector and civil society joined hands with the poor consumers against this rampant cheating and malpractice.
These thoughts were shared by speakers at the Second Regional Conference on Building Partnerships for Strong Consumer Protection in South Asia, organized jointly by the Helpline Trust and Pakistan Certification Bodies Association on Tuesday.
Senator Tanvir Khalid, Ex-Chairperson of Senate’s Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat and President Roshan Khayal Forum said everyone had complaints about the impurities in foodstuff like rice, wheat and spices, etc, and even adulteration in milk. Fake medicines were also sold in packing like the original ones, she said.
Khalid said a mechanism must be evolved to reduce the malpractice, in the best interest of our consumers.
Serving consumer interest, she said, was a gigantic task as it encompassed the health and economic benefits, and basic needs of each and every citizen.
She said there were eight basic rights of consumers: right to satisfaction of basic needs, right to product safety, right to information, right to choice, right to representation, right to address, right to consumer education, and right to a healthy environment.
Khalid said the role of the government in consumer protection was vital through policy-making, legislation and development of institutional capacity for its reinforcement.
The Chairman of the Helpline Trust, Hamid Maker, said the objective of the conference was to draw the attention of the government, judiciary and consumers to the urgent need of introducing consumer protection laws, so as to protect the consumers from sub-standard, counterfeit and adulterated products.
He said consumers were the largest stakeholders in any country. They were treated with respect and protected by strong and effective consumer protection laws and consumer courts developed countries.
But unfortunately, in developing countries, the situation was quite the opposite. Due to lack of effective consumer laws and consumer courts in these regions, consumers were being cheated by glossy, misleading advertisements and were being poisoned by substandard, adulterated and counterfeit products.
He said the callous manufacturers and wholesalers played havoc with the health and lives of the consumers, adding that developing countries had become dumping grounds for substandard, expired foods, beverages, medicines and other items. Their markets were full of these products, which were being marketed openly without the fear of punishment.
In Pakistan, he said, consumer laws were a provincial matter and that there were only two consumer protection acts: One in Islamabad and the other in Punjab, but both were dormant.
“The Consumer Protection Ordinance, Sindh was presented to the governor Sindh in at our last conference and was signed on August 12, 2004. But unfortunately, it was never presented to the Sindh Assembly, and has lapsed.”
While, he said that the Indian government had established a separate Ministry for Consumer Affairs in 1986.
As such, consumer protection movement in India was very strong, and due to the government’s support, there were over 5,000 consumer protection organizations and 3,000 Consumer Courts, which looked after consumer interests.
Bejon Misra, the CEO of Consumer VOICE said being consumers, we all had the right to safety, education, basic needs and right to healthy environment.
The Director General, Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA), Abdul Ghaffaar Soomro said the PSQCA was playing its role so far as international conventions regarding consumer’s rights were concerned. He said that in this regard a consumer liaison office had already been set up in the PSQCA.
PCBA President Zafar Chaudhry pointed out the need for consumer representation in policymaking bodies.
Joint Adviser for Ministry of Science and Technology Shaharyar Khan, Centre for Environment and Development Sri Lanka Executive Officer Uchita de Zoysa, Director General DSTI Bangladesh ABM Abdul Howk Chowdhury, Shafi Parekh Zulifqar Khan and others also spoke.—PPI/APP
