the seriousness intended and may not get the serious attention the matter demands. In all, the need to address the issue of quality control in goods and services rendered in and to Nigeria can never be over emphasized. By the way, which organ of government is responsible for the quality of control of goods manufactured in or imported into the country?
It does appear that it is the absence of meaningful quality control that has made it possible for inferior goods to thrive in Nigeria. No wonder all manner of goods are produced locally and even appearing in foreign labels. We have the NCPC the Nigerian Consumer Protection Commission. We have the SON the Standards Organization of Nigeria. We have the Nigerian Copyright Commission the NCC but which of them is really incharge of the quality control. Which ever organ it is must sit up now before Nigeria is saturated and suffocated with inferior goods.
There is just no boundary or limit. Every aspect of our existence is faced with the danger.
One day I made a casual peep into my house kitchen and on the floor littered more than 50 sticks of matches already struck in an attempt to light a gas stove and prepare breakfast. My little daughter had been striking match stick upon match stick but could not still produce light and it was her exasperated shout of “I don’t know what nonsense is this” that attracted me to the kitchen. I merely consoled her by telling her that the problem was not her carelessness but the carelessness of those who either imported or allowed the importation of that brand of safety matches and the people who either locally manufactured or allowed the pushing into market, such low quality product.
The other day my friend, an electrical engineer was criticizing the cables used for work in my house and to his chagrin he observed that it bore the inscription “Made in Nigeria”. He confessed to me that that electric cable cannot be Nigeria but because people know that the best cables are made in Nigeria, importers now connive with their foreign manufacturers to also package inferior cables under a made in Nigeria label. So where do we go from here?
For many years the indomitable Amazon, Prof Dora Akunyili demonstrated so much concern over the availability and damages of fake drugs in our markets.
Infact, she went to war with drug barons which nearly caused her her life but in the end she won. What has taken Mexico decades and other countries of the South America continent so many years without success was done for Nigeria by Dora Akunyili which goes to prove that what is lacking in the fight against substandard products is zeal, honesty and determination.
The other day I saw in the television some people being sentenced to jail and their factory said to be confiscated for the manufacture of a killer drug called My Pikin. This was after some innocent children have been forced to the great beyond by the drugs which their innocent parents bought with their hard earned money to save them from death. Still they died. Had there been a proactive measure to subject that medicine to proper tests before issuing them to the market, those children who probably would have been great Nigerians would not have died. Where does the error or is it wickedness begins. Is it at the pawl of manufacture, deliberately for Nigerian market and consumption, or is it at the point of entry into the country. Because both points play a role in the dubious act, both points are liable.
The other day I went to a shop and bought “Super glue”. I needed to do something with it but the first one I bought contain less than 3 drops of the liquid. Thinking that it was an error I exposed myself to bigger shock. The next 3 I bought in a row contained absolutely nothing, just the sealed tubes!
When economists say that Nigeria is the largest market for some goods from some countries I begin to question whether they mean dumping ground.
All the way from India and Asia, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea, Indonesia, Thailand, Brazil, just name it, the products keep pouring in.
Last week my neighbour’s 6 years old child nearly cried overnight. On inquiry I was told that the toy the mother bought for his birthday gift disappointed the child. Even though I joined the parents to blame mechanical operation, right inside me I knew it was the inferiority of the product that caused the problem.
When I packed into a new apartment recently, I went to the shop and bought what was referred to as ENERGY BULBS which I was told that they do not need so much current to light. I had to go for them because the intensity of the current Power Holding of Nigeria dispenses in their electricity is less than 25 walts. Again, may be due to absence of quality control. I went for the energy bulbs so as not to consume so much current and perhaps save myself of heavy tariff.
On the bulbs were clearly written 15 walts and would last for 25000 hours. I went home jubilating. This clearly translates to a question of the bulbs lasting for 2 good years assuming they are all on 24 hrs a day. Unfortunately, in less than 6 months all the bulbs are gone. I then realized that nobody may have subjected the bulbs to any form of test to know the viability of the 2yrs claim. In a country where there is no quality control such things are common happen stances.
You see a hawker along the street and buy a charger for your mobile phone only to get home to discover that it does not give you service. You suddenly realized that the hawker is not standing still there and also because it was bought for a few Naira you just discard it hoping to buy a better one next day. Unknown to you lack of or poor quality control has cost you something and life goes on.
Has any one tried to take a critical look at the ball points pens in the market, or the pencils that keep breaking as you sharpen it, or erasers that do not clean anything? Wow, it is neither here nor there but who will redeem us consumers by ensuring a little quality control?
One day, just take a close look at any of these products marketed as HEALTH PRODUCTS. They all have NAFDAC numbers but the amazing thing is the inscription that, NAFDAC has never verified any of the claims of the drugs they registered. I may not fully understand but clearly a loop hole is created for our exploitation.
