The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has indicated that certain “cartels” in the market are artificially raising the price of goods and services in the country, adding that some of the surges in prices do not reflect the reality of demand and supply.
The Acting Executive Vice Chairman of the commission, Adamu Abdullahi, made this disclosure in an interview with Channels TV on Saturday while discussing consumer protection regulations in the country.
According to Abdullahi, these “small cartels,”— as he described them—within the market system arbitrarily determine certain prices for certain goods and services without regard for differences in the cost of production in various places.
He listed associations formed by various artisans in the country like barbers or fish sellers as part of those raising prices, emphasizing that those groups do not set fair prices that favour the consumers.
He said,
Furthermore, Abdullahi also commented on the recent fine imposed by the National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) on the electricity distribution companies (Discos) for overbilling unmetered customers in the country.
In his remarks, the acting vice chairman noted that his commission is supporting NERC to ensure a fair billing price for energy consumers through different regulatory frameworks.
He mentioned that the FCCPC collaborated with NERC to penalize the Discos for their violations related to estimated billing practices.
Recently, TheWitness reported that the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) sealed off the head office of a popular supermarket in the Garki area of Abuja, Sahad supermarket/stores, over customers extortion and lack of transparency in prices.
