Cost of Living IV
We are pleased to note that the public has the highest expectations
from the Consumer Affairs Authority. In other countries, similar
organisations are very powerful and organised.
The present piece of legislation, which is Act No. 9 of 2003 came
into force on 17.03.2003 replacing the Consumer Protection Act, the Fair
Trading Commission Act, the Control of Prices Act and the connected
Regulations.
Previously, there were Price Control Inspectors who were responsible
for implementing the Government Regulations on prices which are
specified. under the present set up only five items are price
controlled. The five items that are price controlled come under
regulatory powers of the Consumer Affairs Authority implemented with the
concurrence of the Minister.
The price control mechanism is exercised by indirect means under
regulatory powers and also by other methods enumerated in the Act. The
Traders are compelled to mark the price, maintain standards, issue a
proper receipt and also comply with the directives of the Authority.
In a free economy, a trader has the freedom to sell an item for the
price he chooses. But it should not be extremely excessive.
In such circumstances, the public should bring it to the notice of
the Consumer Affairs Council which is another limb of the Consumer
Affairs Authority acting independently under a Chairman and the Members
appointed by the Minister.
The mandate of the CAA is very complex and demanding. Its primary
duty is to provide better protection to consumers through regulations of
trade and prices of goods and services. At the same time, it has to
protect traders and manufacturers against unfair trade practices and,
reasonable trade practices.
This is an enormous task, and a complex balancing exercise in a free
economy where traders and consumers have the freedom. In other
countries, the public and other organisations play a major role in this
process. In India an aggrieved citizen can go before the court for
redress in consumer affairs. In Sri Lanka the direct access is through
the Consumer Affairs Authority, which has unrestricted regulatory
powers.
The Consumer Affairs Authority and the Ministry of Trade are
seriously considering changes in the legislation for immediate and
far-reaching remedies for the consumers who are at the receiving end due
to the escalation of prices.
The Consumer Affairs Authority is conscious about the civic duties
and obligations.
We publish three full-pages for consumers in Sinhala, Tamil and
English. On Monday in the Thinakaran, Tuesday in the Dinamina and on
Thursdays in the Daily News through which we are carrying on a
continuous dialogue and educative programmes for Consumers and Traders.
It is difficult for us to implement the international spirit of the
legislature all alone. We need your support, your suggestions and
co-operation.
We invite you to organise yourself by forming Consumer Associations
through which the Consumer Affairs Authority can share power and to work
together to achieve the goal to protect consumers against the making of
the goods or the providing of services which are hazardous to life and
property of the consumer.
We have an ambitious target to set up Consumer Associations in every
village. We are publishing the format of the application and the form
for you to get organised and to register with us in order to help you.
Please do not consider the CAA as a panacea to bring down the cost of
living. If we work together, we are bound to achieve our goal to help
the needy consumer!, staes Sarth Wijesinghe, Chairman, Consumer Affairs
Authority.
Questions and Answers
Q: What are the reasons for the rise in oil prices?
A: Higher demand and pressure from fast growing economies. This
applies to emerging giants of the world economy, China and India and
supply constraints in oil producing countries. Adverse weather
conditions caused supply disruptions. The unsettled political condition
in the Middle East has also contributed to this factor.
Q: What are the typical effects of higher oil prices?
A: If prices continue to climb importers have to spend even more to
get the required oil supplies. Such spending has negative consequences
for economic growth, and it increases the National debt. Of course, the
consumers also feel the higher prices. High energy prices have dramatic,
even life threatening consequences.
Not only (does) transportation to markets, schools and hospitals also
become more expensive. The transport sector, which makes market access
easier for the poor, curtails their mobility. Expensive energy therefore
curtails the budding economic potential of the socially weak.
Q: What are the countries affected by the high oil prices?
A: The oil price hike essentially affects all countries that have to
import oil. The extent to which that happens depends on a wide range of
factors, including the degree of self sufficiency, the ratio of oil
imports to GDP (Gross Domestic Product), economic conditions, access to
capital market and foreign exchange reserves. Developing countries that
import oil particularly will get affected due to high oil prices.
Q: What are the hopes for attaining development goals affected
because of high oil prices?
A: Production in the Asian region is oil intensive; energy efficiency
tends to be low. Oil tends to be the fundamental base for the industrial
growth. When oil prices go up the Government tries to subsidise. Thereby
the national budget that was meant for development has to be spent on
energy. There will be no money or less money to spend on other issues,
which are urgent from a development point of view.
Q: What are the major energy sources in Sri Lanka?
A: Biomass (47%), Petroleum (45%) and Hydro electricity (8%). The
contribution from alternative energy sources such as solar power and
wind power is insignificant.
Q: Is there any relationship between gas prices and increase in crude
oil and other oil prices.
A: Yes. The cost of fuel is indexed to spot prices of crude oil. Thus
in times of oil price hikes, the price of LPG also increases.
Q: What are the basic consumer rights?
A: 1. The right to satisfaction of basic needs: To have access to
basic, essential goods and services; adequate food, clothing, shelter,
healthcare, education, public utilities water and sanitation.
2. The right to safety: To be protected against products, production
processes and services which are hazardous to health or life.
3. The right to be informed: To be given the facts needed to make an
informed choice, and to be protected against dishonest or misleading
advertising and labelling.
4. The right to choose: To be able to select from a range of products
and services, offered at competitive prices with an assurance of
satisfactory quality.
5. The right to be heard: To have consumer interests represented in
the making an execution of government policy, and in the development of
products and services.
6. The right to redress: To receive a fair settlement of just claims,
including compensation for misrepresentation, shoddy goods or
unsatisfactory services.
7. The right to consumer education: To acquire knowledge and skills
needed to make informed, confident choices about goods and services,
while being aware of basic consumer rights and responsibilities and how
to act on them.
8. The right to healthy environment: To live and work in an
environment which is non-threatening to the well-being of present and
future generations.
Q: How does the consumer benefit from market competition?
A: Creating competition among the producers/manufacturers will bring
many results like price reductions, improvement of quality of the
product etc, which will benefit the consumer.
Also the competition will lead to new inventions and investment by
manufacturers and suppliers.
It will also open doors for the product to go to international
markets when the quality of the product improves to meet international
standards.
Q: How does the CAA intervene and investigate on anti-competitive
behaviour.
A: Competition promotion unit of the Consumer Affairs Authority
carries out several market research/study programmes etc. to improve the
quality of the products and services to the consumer. In addition to the
above, the unit also conducts investigations based on public complaints
which help to build up a competitive market.
Q: What power has the Consumer Affairs Authority to handle
Anti-Competitive Practices?
A: The Consumer Affairs Authority has been vested with the power of a
District Court including the power to - * issue notices and require the
attendance of any witness, * require the production of documents or
records, * administer any oath or affirmation to any witness.
Q: In case of a proven anti-competitive practice, what steps would
the CAA take?
A: The Consumer Affairs Authority will take the necessary steps to
stop such practices which will affect the consumer. The Authority will
also take other measures necessary to avoid indirect effects on consumer
by such practices.
The risk of the shopping list
Many housewives are in the habit of preparing a “shopping list”
before going marketing or giving it to the husband or domestic
assistant. The shopping list will have the preconceived “prescription”,
which may go like this: beans, carrots, cabbage, beetroot, leeks, ladies
fingers, drumsticks, tomatoes, etc. The husband or the domestic aide has
no alternative but to purchase the items and in the quantities
‘prescribed’ therein whatever the market price is on that particular
day.
Vegetable prices are not uniformed over long periods. Retail prices
of particular vegetables could vary very widely due to being off-season,
crop failure, transport breakdowns, etc. If purchases are to be made on
a shopping list prepared in advance, the buyer will be an involuntary
victim of extraordinarily high prices of particular types of vegetables
on a particular day.
If, however, the buyer uses the discretion in buying those vegetables
which are cheaper on that particular day, and postpone the purchase of
other items which are expensive on that day, he or she will end up
bringing home a cheaper basket of vegetables.
In the above circumstances, we can immensely benefit from dropping
the habit of the advance shopping list, and develop the habit of
deciding which item to buy and in what quantity, only after visiting the
market place.
This discretion of course, cannot be made by the domestic aide. So,
in order to optimize the expenditure on vegetables, or even for that
matter on fish or fruits, the head of the household or some such
responsible person should do the marketing.
There is an added indirect benefit derived from changing the variety
of vegetables purchased on each marketing spree, without restricting to
a habitual list. You eventually end up consuming a variety of items with
varying nutrition values.
If cabbage is expensive you may switch, for a change to a different
leafy vegetable, which is usually not in the traditional shopping list,
but much more nutritious. We can consume pumpkin or yam when the price
is low, instead of potatoes.
Drop the habit of the shopping list.
Justin Amarasingha, Director Finance, CAA
Be informed fruit vendors
Awareness programme for prevention of improper application of
chemicals
Improper, unhealthy application of chemicals to fruits is a prevalent
practice for quick ripening. These chemicals have the potential to harm
not only the consumers who consume these products but also the fruit
vendors and workers who expose themselves to these chemicals regularly
while applying these chemicals.
Given the involvement of small-scale, un-organized retail sector and
difficulties in detecting application of chemicals through
spot-inspections, it is not practical to control these abuses through
regulatory measures alone.
Therefore, the best long-term strategy is to increase the awareness
among consumers, producers and vendors on harmful effects of these
practices and alternative scientific methods available for ripening of
fruits.
As a measure to overcome this situation the Consumer Affairs
Authority (CAA) had organized a workshop for fruit vendors, importers
and producers with the collaboration of experts from the Industrial
Technology Institute (ITI) at the ITI Auditorium on June 9 between 2.00
and 5.00 p.m. Fruit vendors and importers from Colombo and suburban
markets were invited for this workshop.
Technical experts from ITI have educated participants on harmful
effects of application of chemicals, highlighting the problems that
could be caused by chemicals such as pesticides and ripening agents.
Accordingly, some of the chemicals used are identified as hazardous
chemicals and regular exposure to them could lead to chronic illnesses.
Therefore, the scheme of ‘Good Agriculture Practices’ should be adopted
beginning from the farm through market, until products reach the final
destination - the consumers. Such practices help not only to improve the
hygienic conditions of fruits but also to increase economic benefits by
minimising post harvesting losses and damages.
Experts from ITI also introduced safe and scientific methods
available for ripening fruits and demonstrated how they can be practised
in a low cost manner.
They have pointed out that even when fruit vendors use such
un-harmful methods, quite often the manner of application is incorrect
and is usually applying them in excessive dosages.
Members of the CAA staff created awareness on participants about
legal and regulatory provision available to take action against improper
application of chemicals that can be harmful to consumers.
At the end of the programme, a discussion was held, which was
participated by the ITI and the CAA staff and the Chief Veterinary
Surgeon of the Colombo Municipal Council. Some of the pressing problems
faced by fruit vendors and importers were raised on this occasion. The
workshop was found to be a very useful exercise due to lively response
from participants.
Some participants urged the CAA and the ITI staff to continue similar
programmes throughout the country as well, so that an awareness is built
among traders as well as consumers.
Consumer Afairs Authority
Application form for registration of a Consumer Association under the
section 9(A) of the Consumer Affairs Authority Act, No. 09 2003
1. Name of the organization
2. Area of operation
3. Electorate
4. Administrative District
5. Divisional Secretariat and the address
6. Number of members (Traders cannot be member)
7. Name, address of the President
8. Name, address of the Secretary and telephone number
9. Name, address of the Treasurer and telephone number
10. Official address
11. Name of other office-bearers and telephone numbers.
i. Vice-President
ii. Assistant Secretary
iii. Committee Members
I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI
We request that the Consumer Association formed on................ be
registered.
President’s Signature: ..........................................
Secretary’s Signature: ..........................................
Treasurer’s Signature: ..........................................
Date: .........................
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