‘LIM roundtable on consumer protection timely’ – stakeholders
Determined to influence policy changes in the country’s economic development, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Lawyers in the Media (LIM) Forum assembled a number of eminent lawyers, learned scholars and entrepreneurs at its quarterly roundtable in Benin, the Edo State capital recently to discuss the role of the media in the protection of consumers in Nigeria. Participants at the roundtable which included the immediate past President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Augustine Alegeh, SAN, whose firm, Augustine Alegeh & Co. partnered with LIM to promote this engagement; the Director-General of the Consumer Protection Council (CPC), Tunde Irukera; the Chief Judge of Edo State, Ho. Justice the Vice Chair of the NBA Section on Business Law, Seni Adio, SAN; three Professors of Law, Professor Afeisimi Badaiki; Nathaniel Inegbedion and Dr. Job OdIon; the Solicitor- General of Edo State; Oluwole Iyamu; Senior Special Adviser to the Governor of Edo State on Sustainable Development Goals, Ifueko Alufohai, among others, were unanimous that the NBA-LIM programme was timely and critical for economic development in the country.
HON. JUSTICE ESOHE IKPONWEN, Chief Judge of Edo State
Expounding the importance of the event, the state Chief Judge, Justice Esohe Ikponwen in her goodwill remarks said the theme of the roundtable “Consumer Protection and Economic Development: Need for Media Intervention’ was apt and thoughtful.
She stated, “It is noteworthy that there are a lot of lawyers in the media now unlike in the olden days. We are happy at this development and we expect very high standards from every lawyer in the media.
The CJ whose remarks was punctuated intermittently with applause from the audience, which, included law students and members of the academia in the state, observed that in recent times, consumers hardly ‘get good and quality representation in their cases’ in the law courts.
This, she lamented was worrisome as such litigants who had paid for quality legal services often lose their cases.
Against this backdrop, Justice Ikponwen eloquently said NBA-LIM had a responsibility to ensure consumers were well protected through enlightenment and adequate market-place information.
OLUWOLE IYAMU, Solicitor General, Edo State
In his remarks, The State Solicitor- General, Oluwole Iyamu, who represented the State Attorney General, Prof. Yinka Omorogbe and Governor Godwin Obaseki, stated that if consumer protection was not given a pride of place in the society, the people would be victims of poor legal service delivery.
“That is why this roundtable is important for the development of law, our economy and the society,” he added.
THEODORA KIO-LAWSON, Chair, Nigerian Bar Association Lawyers in the Media Forum
Earlier, in her Welcome Address, the Chair, NBA-LIM, Theodora Kio-Lawson informed participants that the LIM Forum was one of the specialist fora of the NBA, set up to drive policies that affect media practice and media practitioners in Nigeria.’’
She described the challenges of consumer protection in Nigeria as enormous, ranging from the abuse of consumers rights, to unsatisfactory customer services across sectors including banking, telecommunications, manufacturing, aviation, etc. This, she said was the reason for the forum’s partnership and engagement with stakeholders, policymakers, regulators, and the government; with a view to influencing change and development in the society.
Her words “With an appreciation of global trends, a strategy for building strong media partnerships and institutions, and a commitment to serve, the LIM Forum is set to make an impact and bring about change in Nigeria.’’
Kio-Lawson was confident that the discourse which emanated from the roundtable not only brought to light critical issues and challenges in consumer protection but has proffered some vital solutions and will thus drive change.
She added that LIM would work with the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) to create awareness for the passage of competition bill into law.
AUGUSTINE ALEGEH, SAN, Immediate Past President of the NBA
In his In his welcome remarks, the ex-NBA President succinctly recounted the various challenges of Consumer Protection in Nigeria.“These issues range from inadequacies in electricity distribution across the country, billing systems, poor telecommunication services, and several shortcomings in the manufacturing sector, as well as the aviation industry.Alegeh believed that the discourse held at this roundtable ideas from the roundtable would the basis for transformation in some of these sectors and also “enable lawyers learn how to transform every potential cause of action into viable cause of action, when handling consumer protection matters.”
BABATUNDE IRUKERA, Director General, Consumer Protection Council
Director General of the Consumer Protection Council (CPC), Babatunde Irukera, who was the lead speaker, touched on the main theme, ‘Consumer Protection and Economic Development: Need for Media Intervention’.
He stressed the importance of consumer protection to economic development.
According to him, adequate protection of consumer rights and interests would serve as veritable tool and catalyst that ultimately build confidence and affect consumption patterns in any economic environment.
The DG further highlighted the impact of technology in economic development in the country, observing that “where there is no fair regulation, then there is bound to be problems in the system.”
Irukera therefore urged the participants and members of the public to focus on the diversification of the economy in a bid to protect the consumers.
Affirming that the CPC maintains an open-door policy and always receptive to fresh ideas, he argued that the introduction of regulators in the market was the only way to sustain an emerging or existing market.
Recounting scores of complaints on abuses of consumer rights, Irukera observed that instances ranged from defective products from manufacturers, to excessive bank charges being imposed on customers, and prolonged Doctors’ strike leading to loss of lives in hospitals’.
“These challenges abound and I therefore urge members of the NBA Lawyers in the Media (LIM) Forum to partner with the CPC in order to put these issues in the front burner of public domain.”
The DG hoped also that the NBA-LIM through its media intervention programmes would hold manufacturers, marketers, regulators, other key players; and the government accountable by virtue of their role as the watchdog of the society.
DR. JOB ODION, Acting Head, Dept Of Business Law, UNIBEN
Another speaker at the event, an Associate Professor and Acting Head of the Department of Business Law, University of Benin (UNIBEN), Dr. Job Odion, in his paper titled, “Best Practices for the Implementation of Consumer Protection Policies and Regulation in a Converging Environment’’ said consumer protection was very fundamental to the economy especially on the demand and supply side of the basic principles of Economics.
He spoke about the operational and correlation of the theme “Consumer Protection vis-à-vis Economic Development” arguing that consumer protection itself being a contract between two or more parties, should not be dependent on the intervention of the State.
Odion further stressed that consumers were entitled to quality goods and service and thus needed to be protected against unreasonable prices and the vagaries of the market forces in the economic environment. He predicated this submission on the premise that existence of consumer rights had necessitated the need to provide information to the consumers about certain goods and services to enable them make informed choices and decisions. To do otherwise, he argued, would amount to entrapping the consumers into a contract not anticipated.
The speaker further x-rayed various approaches to enable lawyers enforce consumer protection regulations in the court, notably, contract –based remedy; product-based liability as enunciated in the locus of DONOGUE-V-STEVENSON, and however note that a claimant must also discharge the burden of proof on him by proving the particular acts of negligence complained of against the defendant.
His words, “Lawyers should endeavour to navigate through the various approaches though remedies might not be readily available in the statute.” Odion further canvassed the strict liability rule to deal with this situation against an offending manufacturer.
In summing up his presentation, he advocated as best practices, the passage of competition bill into law, in order to prevent cartels from dominating the market and determining the pricing trends in the economy. Maintaining also that only a competition law could cure the imperfections in the existing consumer protection law and the market system.
CHINWE ODIGBOEGWU, Head, Litigation And Dispute Resolution, Nigeria Bottling Company
In her paper titled: Regulation and Legislation in the manufacturing Industry: Ensuring fair trade and consumer protection, the head, litigation and dispute resolution, Nigeria Bottling Company (NBC), Chinwe Odigboegwu, highlighted the exiting legal framework guiding consumer protection in the manufacturing industry.
This, she said, included, Consumer Protection Act, Bill on competition law, SON Act, NAFDAC Act, Tobacco Smoking Control Act, and Manufacturing an Trade practices Act among others.
Odigboegwu stated that while many complaints often made by consumers were frivolous, she listed some practical steps that could be applied to deal with the issues to ensure fair trade practices and consumer protection in the society.
Echoing the thoughts of the earlier speaker, Dr Odion, the NBC Dispute Resolution Head, canvassed the need to improve consumer information awareness. She commended the quick intervention of regulators, such as the CPC, but nonetheless encouraged the use of ADR mechanisms for the resolution of consumer protection disputes,
She said, “It is imperative to ensure that complainants exhaust the internal machineries available for dispute resolution, such as mediation, arbitration, etc., before resorting to litigation.
“We also hope for some level of protection of manufacturers from frivolous and exaggerated claims and lastly, most importantly, more training for regulatory bodies,” Odigboegwu said.
SENI ADIO, SAN, Vice Chair, NBA Section on Business Law
In his appraisal of the papers by the lspeakers, Seni Adio, SAN supported the recommendation of pre-action protocol by Chinwe Odigboegwu.
He said the National Assembly should take note of this while considering the competition bill.
On the other hand, Adio suggested that manufacturing companies that show themselves responsive by entering into dialogue with consumers (with complaints) and arrive at fair settlement as being done in other jurisdictions, should be rewarded for such act.
He however disagreed with Odion that strict liability should be applied against offending manufacturers or service providers. “I am of the view that even where such products are found defective, a claimant must establish his claim in order to secure a remedy,” the Senior Advocate said.
EDOSA EGHOBAMIEN, Chairman, Edo State chapter Institute of Strategic Management and CEO, Amena Academy
Chairman, Edo State chapter Institute of Strategic Management, Edosa Eghobamien hinged the integrity of any manufacturer or service provider on the attainment of best practices in the industry.
He said if this was religiously adhered to consumers would be adequately protected.
He noted however that the impact of social media might adversely the efforts of some manufacturers and service providers towards attaining the best practices in the industry.
The chairman, Air Peace Airline, Allen Onyema, represented by the company’s Corporate Communications Manger, the head of corporate communication Chris Iwarah said that despite obvious challenges besetting the aviation industry in the country, Air Peace had been responsive to the needs of its passengers. He however said that occasional flight delays being encountered might be due to regulatory factor and VIP movements, beyond the control of the airline.
Iwarah went on to make a case for more dialogue among stakeholders, stating all the parties – regulators, consumers, manufacturers and government representatives would need to dialogue to resolve the issues in the aviation industry.
PROF. AFEISIMI DOMINIC BADAIKI
Former Dean of Law and of Post Graduate School, Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Prof. Afeisimi Dominic Badaiki adopted the arguments of Dr. Odion on why consumers’ actions might not succeed.
He also supported the application of strict liability rule because consumers are weak in the market place.
He challenged NBA-LIM to explore section 22 of the Constitution to justify media intervention on the issue.
IFUEKO ALUFOHAI, Senior Special Adviser to the Governor on Sustainable Development Goals
Ifueko Alufokhai, Senior Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on Sustainable Development Goals, spoke of consumer protection awareness and the communication challenges faced by consumers. According to her, an average consumer was bereft of knowledge as to how best to get make complaints or even compensation for the violation of their rights.
She called on regulators to work with groups such as the NBA Lawyers in the Media (LIM) Forum to do more in the area of awareness, while she urged manufacturers and service providers to develop a team of skilled personnel to respond timely to complaints.
PROF. NATHANIEL INEGBEDION, Dean of Law, University of Benin (UNIBEN)
In his brief intervention, Prof. Nathaniel Inegbedion, Dean of Law, University of Benin (UNIBEN) disagreed with his colleagues in the academia on the application of strict liability rule.
He said, “If you apply this rule, you will be shutting out the manufacturers and that is not the objective of consumer protection. Their should be room for fair trade. While it may be easy to apply strict liability in criminal law, it cannot be so in consumer protection matters.”
The NBA Lawyers in the Media Forum has been commended for this engagement and its timely intervention by stakeholders in the legal and business communities.
Earlier, goodwill messages were received from various personalities including the Governor of Edo state, Governor, Godwin Obaseki, Chief Arthur Obi Okafor, SAN who was represented by Professor Ikpeazu, Mazi Afam Obi, the immediate past General secretary of the NBA and Paul Usoro, SAN, Founding Partner, Paul Usoro & Co.