What we have found out that these people are doing is misleading pricing and lack of transparency in the pricing, which is against Section 115 (3) of the law.
By Deborah Hassan
365Daily – The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has sealed off a branch of the popular Sahad Stores, located in the Area 11, Garki area of Abuja for alleged misleading product pricing.
The FCCPC enforcement team, led by Acting Executive Vice Chairman of the agency, Adamu Ahmed Abdullahi, said on Friday, February 16, that the management of Sahad Store Supermarket was shortchanging customers by charging prices higher than the official price tag on their shelves.
He added that the store would remain sealed until the completion of the further investigation.
Abdullahi said, “What we have found out that these people are doing is misleading pricing and lack of transparency in the pricing, which is against Section 115 (3) of the law that says a consumer is not required to pay a price for any good or service higher than the one that’s on display.
“Section 155 states that any corporate person that contravenes is liable to a fine of 100 million naira or even more and the directors of the company themselves are liable upon conviction payment of 10 million naira each or imprisonment of six months or both.
“What we have done today is to make sure that they comply with the law. We initially called them to come and defend themselves, but failed to show up. In the long run, they sent a lawyer whom we asked if he was familiar with the facts of the case. He said he wasn’t.
“To unseal the store, they have to make sure that they do what is required to be done,” FCCPC boss stated.
President Bola Tinubu and state governors this week raised concerns over rising food inflation in the country, leading to an agreement to set up a committee to tackle the issue of hoarding of produce and other essential commodities in the country.