By Aduragbemi Omiyale
A one-month moratorium has been given to sellers of food items and other goods to crash their prices or risk being punished for exploitation.
This threat was made by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), which expressed worry over the arbitrary hike in prices of goods.
The chief executive of the agency, Mr Tunji Bello, while speaking at a one-day stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja, gave traders across the country the deadline “to cease exploitative pricing.”
“Under Section 155, violators whether individuals or corporate entities face severe penalties including substantial fines and imprisonment if found guilty by the court.
“This is intended to deter all parties involved in such illicit activities. However, our approach today is not punitive. I, therefore, call on all stakeholders to embrace the spirit of patriotism and cooperation.
“It is in this spirit that we are giving a moratorium of one month before the commission will start firm enforcement,” Mr Bello, a former Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources in Lagos said.
He informed the audience of a supermarket in Lagos, which sells the Ninja fruit blender for N944,999 when the same item costs $89 (about N140,000) in the United States, precisely in Texas.
He described this act as exploitative, emphasising that such will no longer be accepted, as the agency was determined to protest consumers in the country.
“In view of the current situation in Nigeria, let me, however, be very unequivocal; price gouging and price fixing are not only unethical but patently illegal under the FCCPA.
“As such, the FCCPC has the will and the capacity to invoke the full weight of the law against those found culpable of exploiting consumers,” he declared.