‘Boycott the profiteers’
CAB urges people
We see them adulterating food with chemicals and colours... They increase transport fares, produce fake products with original seals, manipulate weight machines and so on. The consumers don't get justice.
The Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) yesterday urged people to boycott fraudsters, hoarders and profiteers.
The association said Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection is not enough to protect consumer rights, so there should be a separate ministry in this regard.
It demanded at least a "consumer rights" division under a ministry.
The Consumers Association of Bangladesh made the demands at a webinar titled "Consumers are victims of profiteering and fraud".
In the keynote speech, CAB vice president SM Nazer Hossain said it has been observed that the number of unethical business people is increasing, and nobody is being able to control them.
"Before festivals like Eid and Puja, we see businesses announcing big sales worldwide, while the situation is reversed here," he said.
"Here, we see traders competing to increase prices of all commodities," he added.
Adulteration is the most dangerous practice among traders, Nazer said.
"We see them adulterating food with chemicals and colours... They increase transport fares, produce fake products with original seals, manipulate weight machines and so on. The consumers don't get justice," he claimed.
CAB Senior Vice President Prof M Shamsul Alam said, "CAB has the authority to file cases against such irregularities. But it seems that only filing cases are not enough; we have to form a movement."