World Consumer Day:

Consumers a powerful force worldwide

Sarath Wijesinghe

World Consumer Day was first observed on March 15, 1983 to promote basic rights of all consumers to ensure that those rights are protected and respected

The identified consumer rights by the United Nations are the right to satisfaction of basic needs, right to safety, right to be informed, right to choose, right to be heard, right to redress, right to consumer education and right for a healthy environment.

This is the framework on which the domestic consumer mechanisms in respective countries have been formulated depending on the circumstances and atmosphere of respective jurisdictions.

In a free economy consumerism plays a major role in reducing the cost of living and providing the citizen consumer items of quality at an affordable price. We have embraced free economy in 1978 in place of close economy replacing the concept of price control introduced during war days.

In the West consumerism is powerful as those countries have organized the system with the backing of the civil society and the media.

In other parts of the world too consumerism is vibrant and powerful. However, Sri Lanka is still in the primitive stages. Consumer International every year chooses an important topic as a slogan to activate the consumer movement and keep the movement alive. Last year the issue was junk food generation and this year it is “your money our rights” which is opportune on the current financial crisis and uncertainty due to the recent unpleasant experience worldwide on economy, the financial crisis that crippled the world economy to a grinding halt.

Consumer worldwide is a powerful force well organized with media worldwide. It was celebrated with of the Consumer Affairs Authority’s leadership.

This year the mantle of leadership falls on the Public Utilities Commission, another regulator acts on behalf of the interest of the consumer defined in both CAA and PUSl as “any actual or potential user of any goods or services made available for a consideration by any trader or manufacturer.”

Charter on fundamental rights jurisdiction and public law remedies available in the system of law have some opening in promoting and enjoying consumer rights which are a basic human right.

World consumer day initiatives can be concerned with the food we eat, medicine we take, products we use and most importantly the money we earn the hard way is being managed by others on our behalf. There should be transparency in dealing/managing and accountability.

The theme of past two years has been junk food generation based on the preparation of unhealthy food. Famous fast food chains and small and large food chains in food industry have been the culprits against whom the consumerism movement and the civil society waged war for against. Yet the health of the generation worldwide is deteriorating. This disturbed our traditional food culture that made our Nation powerful and healthy with locally manufactured food and living with “Nature”.

Is your money managed by others ?

Central Banks, Banks, and financial institutions manage our money for which their accountability to the investor is less. The world financial crisis was due to the fraudulent conduct and mismanagement of financial institutions in the USA and UK and the west to which the entire world had to pay a high price. In the West the house market on which the money was depending on, collapsed as a result of over inflation of the property markets. West is used to “Credit Card” life where spending was based on paperwork of financial institutions.

This is not safe in the long run. They are a nation of debtors living on debts with no shame or hesitations unlike Asians who are reluctant to live under the roof of a mortgaged property belonging to others. We tend to lead a simple life with our own money instead of enjoying comforts on borrowed money. We escaped the crisis because we are traditionalist and careful in dealing with money.

Our banks were cautious and strictly adhered to rules. In England, bank managers were so corrupt that they went after lenders offering loans leading to the collapse of the financial institutions in UK and USA recovering at a slow pace.

Loans were granted with inflated values and USA and UK fell together with the EU and other connected jurisdictions. It takes time to recover. Are the banks and financial institutions are honest or competent to manage our money is a moot issue as they are answerable to the State and the shareholders and not those investors which amount to 80 percent of the value of establishment.

No steps are taken to be answerable to the investors and all steps are taken to educate and for the safety of the shareholders who are not necessarily the investors. They possess a nominal share and have the lion’s share of the profit perks and benefits as “fat cats” and violent sharks in the field of financial gold mine.

It is time the consumer movement take these challenges to take legal and other procedural steps for accountability and proper protection of the investors and for a fair hearing and share the management in line with the powers of the shareholders.

We have no control and access to our money nor are we informed of the mode of investment to which the shareholders have full access legal and otherwise. Once you part with money you have no control and accountability.

“26 Billion Unregulated funds over 26 years in Sri Lanka amongst others”

This example is chosen not to be critical, but to learn lessons for the future. This is the worst financial tsunami of Sri Lanka and it is a miracle we stood straight despite the collapse of western economies due to their own folly and “Greed” with utter selfishness. Sakvithi and other episodes too damaged our economy.

Central Bank is the reserve bank of a State with exclusive privileges to lend the Government its currency, lender of the last resort, lender to banks and the main financial regulator.

European Central Bank and Federal Reserve system in the USA manages the respective financial. In Sri Lanka Central Bank is managed based on the management of the Bank of England as the main regulator on finance of the Nation.

It implements and maintains the financial policy. Now the Central Bank headed by an able head has taken steps to supervise the errant and illegal financial institutions that were free to swindle the genuine investors who have lost the investments. Other regulator responsible for this mishap is the Consumer Affairs Authority

The CAA should be active to meet the high cost of living and high prices of unjust traders.

This is the era the CAA should be pro-active to help the President and the nation to provide the citizen healthy and quality consumer items and services at an affordable price.

The Central Bank and CAA should have done a lot to protect the consumer.

It is still not too late for the two institutions to work together and it is time for the CAA to start the consumer pages again to educate the consumer Trader Industrialist, and the State.

The writer is the Consumer Affairs Authority former Chairman