Cross section of Nigerians in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have applauded the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) for their achievements in protecting the interests of consumers nationwide.
In particular, they commended their proactive activities, their timely interventions and continued actions inspite of intimidation and actions aimed at dragging the commission to the mud by some unscrupulous individuals.
These Nigerians spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Thursday, urging other regulatory agencies to emulate the FCCPC to enhance service delivery across the country.
The consumers were reacting to the achievements of President Bola Tinubu in the consumer protection space in remembrance of Mr President’s two years in office.
Dr Aliyu Ilias, the Executive Director, Save the Consumers, said that FCCPC had tamed the activities of loan sharks.
Ilias said that the commission had also curbed issues around price gouging and unreasonable price fixing among traders.
The executive director commended the efforts of the commission in the cable television DSTV saga, saying that they acted in the interest of consumers.
“You have seen the challenge of loan sharks and FCCPC has been able to tame it.
“I can tell you that some people do that in hiding now and they have also been able to caution overpricing.
“We have also seen their efforts on the DSTV issue,” he said.
Ilias said that the commission had also being responsive in addressing consumers’ online and offline complaints.
He urged consumers to always provide the commission with the needed information to achieve their mandates.
“We should learn how to say something when we see something, when we see something; we should be able to escalate it,” he said.
Mrs Catherine Omale, a civil rights activist, said that the FCCPC needed to expand the scope of its coverage to the 36 states of the country.
Omale who commended the efforts of the commission, said that their impact needed to be felt in the states and local government areas.
“I have seen and read about the achievements of FCCPC especially during Mr Tunde Irukera’s tenure.
“The commission has proved that the common man can still trust the government by their works,” she said.
On his part, Mr Raphael Ogodo, a civil servant, appealed to the commission to collaborate with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to address forceful ripening of fruits among other sharp practices.
“It is no longer news that some traders ripen fruits and foods with chemicals like carbide and the rest, we need FCCPC to join hands with NAFDAC to fight this because NAFDAC alone cannot do this.
“This is the main reason why people are developing different terminal diseases even children,” he said.
Ms Chineze Akachukwu, a student at the University of Abuja, commended the commission in its regulatory efforts against Meta over data protection issues.
On the complaints about banks’ sharp practices, Akachukwu appealed to the commission to respond swiftly to consumers whose hard-earned monies were held in distressed banks.
NAN recalls that the executive vice chairman of the commission, Mr Tunji Bello had reinstated the commitment of the FCCPC toward championing the rights of Nigerian consumers as well as ensuring fair business practices.
