Do you know your consumer rights?

Mar 18, 2019

In Uganda currently, there are no clear guiding policies on how consumers should be protected despite some efforts by government to fight the manufacture of substandard goods through entities like Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS).

 PIC:  UNBS officials loading on trucks the substandard mattresses that they confiscated from business people in Kampala on February 15, 2019 (File Photo)

Francis Kamanda from Kyambogo University recently bought an electric motor cycle from one renowned electric vehicle company at Sh3.2m.

He was assured by the manager that the motor cycle when fully charged can take him a distance of 60km.

However on first attempt to ride, Kamanda says the bike did not cover 25km, which is not even half the distance that he was told. A disappointed Kamanda then took the bike back the following day to demand for an explanation from the management.

"The manager failed to explain why the bike could not cover the distance he said it would," he says.

Apparently, he says someone informed him that he couldn't get new batteries, because all their batteries had been compromised since they were kept on the floor in their store. "They promised to pay back, but tossed me around till I decided to get a lawyer," he says.

Unlike  Kamanda who knew his rights as a consumer, many consumers rights have been infringed on by profit oriented business people and unfortunately never pursue to seek redress because they are ignorant of their rights as consumers.

How well do you know your rights as a consumer?

The World Consumer Rights Day (WCRD) is observed every year on March 15, essentially to promote basic rights of consumers to demand that they are respected and protected among consumers and entrepreneurs themselves.

The WCRD was first celebrated in 1983 which then became an important annual occasion for mobilising citizen action and solidarity with in the international labour movement.

For this day to come into play, former president of the US John F. Kennedy on March 15, 1962 delivered a historic address to the US Congress where he outlined his vision of consumer rights. He gave four basic rights for a consumer that is the right to safety, to choose, to inform and to be heard.

The day is organised by Consumers International (CI) the world's federation of consumer groups. Consumer international serves as the only independent and authoritative global mouthpiece for consumers founded in 1960.

The federation is in charge of selecting a theme for the day's annual celebrations and activities.                    

Under this year's theme "trusted smart products" there is a desire to increase access to these devices through fair data pricing, a better internet infrastructure as well as securing protection for consumers using second hand devices.

According to CI, there are 23 billion smart products world over and these have outnumbered the world's population.

Smart products have changed the way we do things today from eating to working. However there are some concerns raised by CI like lack of security, privacy and lack of clarity of who is responsible when it turns erroneous.

The aim of celebrating the WCRD is to create awareness of consumer rights and responsibilities, which a number of people are not aware of thus their rights abused as consumers by profit minded business persons.

Dan Marlone Nabutsabi, the national coordinator for Uganda Consumer Action Network (U-CAN) says consumer education and awareness is still an ongoing effort with the diverse types of services and products consumed on today's market.

"Previously, this effort seemed to have been relegated only to consumer advocacy organisations. Lately, however, government ministries, departments and agencies have also started to create units responsible for consumer education, awareness and protection for their respective sectors," he says.

Nabutsabi says as consumer rights activists, they have tried their best through advocacy which also turns out to be costly venture.

"That's why we shifted from relying solely on development partners for support and have partnered with various government ministries, departments and agencies to ensure that Ugandan consumers are protected. We're working on establishing a joint consumer redress centre, probably before the close of the year," he says.  

In relation to this year's theme, Nabutsabi says consumers need to be cautious about their security and privacy while using smart phones especially in how much personal information is exchanged through digital platforms like social media. 

"This will ensure that we are protected from exploitation by unscrupulous persons, as we wait for government to enact the consumer protection law," he says.

Outlining some of the basic rights, Nabutsabi says consumers need to know that they have a right to be safe from the products they use, with no harm or side effects.

Consumers also have the right to get accurate information about any product they intend to consume in order to make informed choices.

"But it is also the responsibility of the consumers to complain when not satisfied and to endeavour to use products in the most environmentally friendly manner," he adds.

In Uganda currently, there are no clear guiding policies on how consumers should be protected despite some efforts by government to fight the manufacture of substandard goods through entities like Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS).

The Consumer Protection Bill 2007 which proposes strong penalties against those engaged in manufacturing and trading in counterfeit and substandard goods turning Uganda into a dumping area in the region, is still in the shelves and has not been passed by Parliament.

However, Godwin Muhwezi, UNBS ‘s public relations officer says the bureau has done its very best in ensuring that the rights of consumers are protected.

"We designs standards that are meant to protect the health and safety of consumers, so if we certify that a product meets the standards then we have protected the consumer, when we cease products that do not meet standards on the market," says Muhwezi.

"Like recently we destroyed about 400 metric tonnes of products that were on the market yet they did not meet the standards, the value of those products was about sh3.5m, so in that sense we have protected consumers," he explains.

Citing various examples where UNBS has seized products on the market during its operations, Muhwezi says almost everything the bureau does has an element of consumer protection.

"Under our weights and measures division, we do check weighing scales and fuel pumps to ensure that they measure accurately and on verification we give them the UNBS stamp.  It's not only an act of promoting fair trade but also protecting consumers from being cheated," he says.

He however encourages consumers to report any product they find on the market that does not meet the standard to seek redress and not just sit back; adding that some have tried to report.

"We have a toll free line which they can always call to report such issues and that is 0800133133," he says.

Muhwezi also noted that although there is no law yet that protects consumers' rights, they follow the UNBS Act which has some inherent clauses that are supposed to ensure that there is consumer protection.

"As we develop standards, we ensure that issues of consumers are well taken care of. Even as a point of enforcement we do that to protect the consumers as far as our mandate is concerned, our Act has provisions that are designed to protect the consumer," he explains.

Muhwezi also says that UNBS has partnered with several consumer protection associations who sit on the bureau's technical committee to develop the standards.

On sensitisation of the masses, Muhwezi says the bureau always avails its staff on various experiential events where they sensitise the masses on how to identify counterfeit products on the market and how to go about it; adding that the bureau also has some regional offices through which they reach even those in rural areas.

 

 

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