We demand that consumer contracts with private and public sector entities regarding provision of basic services.
ISLAMABAD: The World Consumer Rights day comes and goes every year in Pakistan, with most of us not even aware of when it happens (March 15). As an organisation that wants to protect and safeguard the rights of consumers in this country, we demand that consumer legislation in Pakistan must be aligned with internationally recognised consumer rights according to UN guidelines.
We also demand that consumer legislation and consumer protection be improved by amending the Consumer Protection Act of 1995. Under this, formation of the consumer council was mandatory. Unfortunately, that council has yet to be set up. We demand that all the provinces pass legislation to incorporate internationally recognised consumer rights for their residents. A crucial step in this is the establishment of consumer councils and consumer courts, as is the case in Punjab.
We demand that government and society act to protect consumers from malpractices, fake goods, poor services and faulty products by insisting on implementation of existing legislation by taking steps to improve regulation, setting up a redress mechanism and initiating a mass awareness campaign for consumer rights. We also demand that consumer contracts with private and public sector entities, especially regarding the provision of basic services, such as gas and electricity, must be reviewed in order to give consumers a fair deal.
Naseer Ahmed
Published in The Express Tribune, March 16th, 2014.
Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.
