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Botswana: 'Consumers Need a Cheetah, Not an Elephant'
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Mmegi/The Reporter (Gaborone)
INTERVIEW
13 March 2008
Posted to the web 13 March 2008
Last Saturday March 8 was World Consumer Rights Day. Mmegi caught up with Richard Harriman of Business & Enterprise Solutions Botswana (Pty) Ltd.
And asked him about this day and other consumer rights -related issues.
Q. What is World Consumer Rights Day?
A. It's another of those days that someone somewhere decides is a special day. They give us an opportunity to make some noise about a particular topic and to do our best to get the attention of the public. However, people must remember that their rights are there 365 days a year, 24/7.
Q. What did you do to mark the day?
A. We spent a couple of hours on Monday outside Pick 'N' Pay at Molapo Crossing handing out leaflets describing consumers' rights and advising on actions consumers may take when they feel their rights have been ignored.
Q. Why Pick 'N' Pay at Molapo Crossing?
A. We have a long relationship with Pick 'N' Pay, Molapo Crossing. Bruce, Gabo, Sallies, De Klerk and the (rest of the) team have consistently shown they really understand about looking after their customers. They have supported us in our efforts to educate consumers on their rights. They have always understood that we are here not only to criticise the bad guys but to celebrate the good guys as well.
Obviously we have no financial connection with them and we neither give nor receive anything from them other than moral support.
On a number of occasions they have 'gone the extra mile'. On a few occasions when we have been helping consumers fix problems with other stores, Pick 'N' Pay at Molapo Crossing have stepped in to help. On one occasion, we had a shopper who had been injured in another store and Bruce and his team offered her an empty trolley and invited her to fill it for free. They also do a huge amount for charity and they really are good guys.
Q. Whose fault is poor service?
A. Ours. Entirely ours. If we allow stores to trample on us, then we are to blame. Yes, there are decent stores who understand our rights and their obligations; places like Pick 'N' Pay at Molapo Crossing, Primi Piatti, Spurs, Café Dijo, Barloworld, some of the banks and so on. But there are many, many stores and suppliers that will abuse us if they get the chance. The only way to stop this happening is for consumers themselves to stand up for their rights and simply not accept abuse. Yes, we know this is easy to say, but often difficult to achieve.
One of the problems is that we in Botswana are often just too polite, too courteous, too respectful of people like store managers who seem very important. We all love our natural courtesy and we at Consumer Watchdog don't want this to change, but every so often we are allowed to get stroppy.
However, this can only happen if people know their rights.
Q. How can people learn about their rights?
A. Well, the Consumer Protection Unit has a legal responsibility to educate us. The Consumer Protection Act says that the functions of the Unit includes implementing "consumer education programmes". But when was the last time any of us saw that happening?
They have enormous powers to protect us, but they just don't use them. We've heard that they believe that all they can do is mediate, but this is simply not true. The Consumer Protection Act says that they can:
summon people for questioning;
seize documents and assets;
demand that a supplier stop any behaviour they don't approve of
start court proceedings;
declare business practices unlawful; and
request the courts to appoint a curator, in other words, shut the company down!
Q. Is it really Government's job?
A. We believe, very strongly, that this is not a job for Government. They have power but they are too big, too inflexible, too slow to react. Consumers need a cheetah, not an elephant.
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What we hear from Government is plans to form umbrella groups, to hold workshops, seminars, endless trips to Kasane to think about things. We don't need any more thinking about consumer protection. We need action.
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