The Standards Organisations of Nigeria (SON) has been charged to intensify efforts in preventing the importation of counterfeit products into the country.
Nigerians are equally tasked to have a change of attitude as every citizen has a role to play in ensuring a better society.
Oba Mufutawu Badamasi Muhammed Oloyede, Esuwoye II, made the charge in Offa, Kwara State while hosting the SON, Kwara chapter, in his palace.
The monarch said about 90 per cent of goods imported into the country are substandard, thereby making it hard for local manufacturers to thrive.
Olofa noted that since imported goods are low in quality, the importers can afford to sell them at lower prices than local manufacturers can do.
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“So when you manufacture in Nigeria and you want to follow the standards, it becomes too expensive. That is why local manufacturers cannot thrive here; they will not be able to compete with them.
“What will be used in other countries for three years, when imported into Nigeria, hardly works for months. We are spending double because we allow them to be serving us adulterated products,” said the Oba.
The Kwara chief also asserted that gone are the days when imported goods were the best, noting that “nowadays our products here are the best because we are afraid to kill our brothers, but the one that is coming in is fake.”
The traditional ruler asks, “When importers are bringing in rubber rice, and injecting small chicken with chemicals to make it big for us to consume, what does that signifies?”
“Given these, you (SON) have a lot to do by intensifying efforts and making sure that sub-standard products are totally blocked from entering into our country. Most of the work of your organisation would need to be at the borders or ports. For you here to be going to a local factory is like sending them away”, he explained.
Earlier, Sunday Ishaya Yashim, state coordinator of SON, said that the team was in Offa to brief the monarch about the activities of the organisation, and as well receive his blessings.
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According to him, in line with the recent Act No. 14 of 2015, which has not only expanded the activities of SON but also empowered the organisation in the areas of standardisation, quality assurance, compliance monitoring, enforcement, arrest, among several others, assured that SON is ever ready to improve its service delivery and adequately cover Offa township and environs.
Yashim, who noted that SON is saddled with monitoring products to safeguard consumers and counter fake products in Nigeria, solicited support from the monarch to ensure effective service delivery to the Offa people.
He explained that the organisation had on November 16th took a campaign against substandard goods to some secondary schools in Offa as a way of making the students realise the need for them to go for quality products.
SIKIRAT SHEHU, Ilorin
