The Consumer Association of Bangladesh (CAB) on Monday, demanded a ‘separate division’ within the commerce ministry (MoC) to protect consumers’ rights accordingly.
CAB also claimed that it is not possible to ensure the rights of consumers in regard to the structure of MoC while the existing Directorate of National Consumers’ Right Protection (DNCRP) is also not enough either.
The demand was made at the webinar titled ‘Consumers are victims of exorbitant profits and fraud: traders don’t care to obey the law’ organised by CAB.
The event was moderated by its Organising Secretary Syed Mizanur Rahman Raju.
CAB Senior Vice President Prof M Samsul Alam said we have been demanding a separate ministry for consumer rights for a long time.
“The DNCRP is alone not enough to protect the rights of consumers. At least for the time being we want a consumer rights division within the commerce ministry”.
“We might go for a tougher movement if our demand is not met”, added he.
CAB Vice President SM Nazer Hossain presented the keynote.
He said the DNCRP, Food Safety Authority and city corporations are conducting market operations to prevent dodgy activities of the traders.
Financial penalties are being imposed but the malpractices by dishonest traders still continue, he said.
Highlighting the activities of various government agencies, he said that the base of these unscrupulous businessmen is so strong that the government agencies seem helpless to them.
He also claimed that such traders use a section of government bureaucrats, law enforcement agencies and ‘various media’ for their own benefits using their financial power.
The government helps the business chambers and associations, which are making Bangladesh a market and laboratory for adulterated and substandard food.
As a result, the lion's share of the people’s income is being drained out for medicine and treatments, he said.
The gap between traders and consumers in the country, however, is widening following such an unbalanced situation which is a great obstacle to the development of healthy business, he said.
Kazi Abdul Hannan, editor of Bhoktakantha, Humayun Kabir Bhuiyan, general secretary of CAB, and Manjur-e-Khuda Tarafder, treasurer of CAB also spoke on the occasion among others.
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