KEY POINTS

• Inquiry by FCCPC into banking, telecom and aviation industries.
• The extent of investigation includes service failures, such as banking network problems and data drain.
• There are claims that Air Peace charged exploitative ticket prices and is exploiting its passengers in service.

Air Peace and several other banks, telecommunications companies and airlines are currently being investigated by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), for consumer complaints it had received.

The inquiry is part of the commission’s ongoing efforts to safeguard consumers’ rights and resolve service-related issues in Nigeria’s critical sectors.

Inquiries into banking and telecommunications sectors

Reports of network failures at various banks, reported to have hampered customers’ ability to access their funds, will also come under the scrutiny of FCCPC.

The probe will also encompass a leading telecommunications company that failed to provide data services and uselessly consumed data without the customers’ consent, according to a statement from the commission’s Corporate Affairs Director Ondaje Ijagwu. In addition, user complaints of poor customer care will also be reviewed.

Investigate Air Peace’s pricing practices

It will also investigate Air Peace Limited over allegations of exploitative ticket pricing including alleged high price increases for early booking on some domestic flights.

Poor service delivery and the potentially exploitative practices that violate consumers’ rights are what the Ijagwu said will characterise the engagement, scheduled between December 3 and 5.

The exercise will be under the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA), 2018 which deals with Consumer Protection, unfair competition and market disruption.

The obligations of the FCCPC include investigation of practices that prejudice consumers and the enforcement of standards of conduct of businesses.

Consumer protection and market accountability

All implicated companies must show up before the commission, according to Ijagwu, to offer information and provide explanations. It is the commission’s job to move quickly and to maintain a fair marketplace.

And he appealed to Nigerians to report bad service experiences and rubbish practices by businesses by sending a report via FCCPC channels for necessary action.

To reflect the commitment of the commission to consumer rights and market fairness, the inquiry seeks to hold accountable operators, in crucial sectors.