KEY POINTS

• MAN requests to be able to better delineate consumer protection from manufacturer activities.
• For spurious claims that inflict legitimate businesses, Ajayi Kadir warns against it.
• Ayojimi calls for manufacturers’ rights to be taken into account in regulatory reforms.

MAN, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, has warned against the rise in the spurious claims of consumer rights and appealed for better protection for legitimate manufacturers.

Segun Ajayi Kadir, the association’s Director-General, stated this during a webinar tagged ‘Balancing the Equation between Consumer Protection and Manufacturers’ Rights.’

The key, he suggested, was to be sure to draw a strict line between protecting consumers’ rights and restricting the freedom with which manufacturers do business.

Ajayi-Kadir said it was important to make sure that credible manufacturers aren’t erroneously targeted by unfounded consumer claims or hazardous regulations.

Such misapplications of consumer protection laws, he underlined, will have severe adverse impacts on businesses in general and most severely on small and medium enterprises.

‘We need to make sure that there is not sacrifice of legitimate manufacturers in the name of the consumer’s right,’ he said.

Defining boundaries

Many genuine manufacturers have become victim of online media trials and unfounded allegations incurring great damage to their reputation, warned Ajayi Kadir.

‘It is not acceptable that we knowingly or unknowingly jeopardise the survival of innocent manufacturing entities, either,’ he said, adding that there has to be clear, fair regulations to ensure a healthy market environment.

He stressed that federal and sub regional agencies already regulate heavily manufacturing sectors to make sure a product is in compliance before it is released to the market.

The consumer protection laws should be balanced, Ajayi Kadir, however, noted. He contended that these laws did not serve to disturb the proper conduct of manufacturers, but to redress the real grievances of the consumers.

Manufacturers’ rights and the public trust

This is a topic echoed by MAN’s guest speaker, Muyiwa Ayojimi, CEO Consumertrics, who urged MAN to push for manufacturers’ rights to be included in regulatory framework.

But he suggested that the association should also be a leader in pushing through preventive reforms that shield consumers and manufacturers alike.

Accordingly, Ayojimi suggested that MAN swing into action as a bridge between the two sides, win the public trust as well as promote safe and ethical manufacturing practices and innovation in the sector.

In addition, he emphasized the need to bring to the fore the success stories whereby manufacturers do well in consumer protection and dispute resolution.

According to Ayojimi, manufacturers and consumers would have to work together to create a more fair marketplace, with both sides benefitting as the creature grows.