Are consumers at the mercy of businesses and Ministry of Trade?

By Appiah Kusi ADOMAKO, Esq

“People of the same trade seldom meet together, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices.”-Adams Smith

About a month ago, I purchased a 55-inch TV from a shop in Accra. Before finalizing the sale, the shop attendant opened the box and tested the TV. It worked.  However, when I connected it at home the following morning, the device failed to work. I returned to the shop with the TV and reported the issue. To my surprise, the sales officer told me that the device was functional when it was tested the previous day and refused to take responsibility.

I requested to see their supervisor who also remained adamant citing a ‘no returns’ policy unless it was a manufacturer’s defect. However, he offered to have their technicians inspect the fault, but I would be charged for the repairs.

I protested! Coincidentally, a friend walked into the shop while the argument was ongoing and addressed me as ‘Lawyer Adomako’. Upon hearing that I was a lawyer, the supervisor suddenly changed his tone and offered to replace the TV and provide a two-year warranty.

On that day, it was not an Act of Parliament or Ghana’s 1992 Constitution that saved me as a consumer. Rather, it was my profession as a lawyer that came to my aid. If this had happened to a taxi driver or the vast majority of Ghanaians (about 99.99%), the shop would have taken advantage of the unsuspecting buyer with impunity, disregarding their rights without consequence.

Daily, the rights of Ghanaian consumers are violated by businesses at will and whim. Most Ghanaians suffer what I suffered and never become successful in resolving the issue. The fact is that one does not need to be a lawyer in order to assert his or her fundamental right as a consumer.

Expensive goods are sold in the country without an express warranty. When one questions the seller, the usual answer is that there is a warranty for a manufacturer’s defect. About a year ago, I ordered a Samsung washing machine from the UK and the manufacturer’s warranty was 25 years. Meanwhile, this same manufacturer will sell the same product in Ghana and the African market and provide almost no warranty.

Some businesses deliberately decide to withhold key information from consumers. Once the consumer gets back home and realizes that the product is not fit for purpose, the shop will not accept the item back.

Are businesses conspiring against consumers?

The last decade has seen the emergence of trade and business associations forming chambers to protect and lobby for their interest. We have Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors (CBOD), Chamber of Construction Industry (CCI), Chamber of Telecommunication (COT), Chamber of Cement Manufacturers, Ghana Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI), Chamber of Mines, Chamber of Pharmacy, Chamber of AgriBusiness, Chamber of Technology, Chamber of Shipping, Chamber of Independent Power Producers (IPP) and many more. Freedom of association is a fundamental human right which the 1992 Constitution grants unequivocally.

However, it was Adams Smith who wrote in his Wealth of Nations in 1776 that “people of the same trade seldom meet together, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices.”

It is unnatural for business associations not to seek the interest of their members. About a week ago, the leadership of the Ghana Union of Traders (GUTA) announced plans to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with all potential governments ahead of the upcoming elections.

According to GUTA, the move is aimed at ensuring that the interests of its members are protected and that political parties honour their commitments if elected.  Businesses are lobbying to protect their interests.

It is the duty of the government to act and protect the interests of its citizens through relevant framework laws. The passage of the Consumer Protection Law will help empower, protect and enhance the welfare and interest of the consumer, provide a consistent and effective consumer protection framework, prohibit certain unfair practices, improve consumer awareness, education and information and establish the Consumer Protection Commission.

Is the MOTI the problem or the solution?

The country started the process of getting a Consumer Protection Law and the National Petroleum Authority law in 2005. The National Petroleum Authority Act 691 was passed by Parliament in 2005 whilst the Consumer Protection Bill still remains a draft document at the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MOTI).

The NPA has been able to work with Act 691 and it is now going to Parliament with a new NPA Bill which when passed will repeal Act 691. The NPA Bill is among the list of bills to be considered when Parliament reconvenes next week.

It is the duty of the sponsoring Ministry (MOTI) to ensure that government policies and political manifestos are implemented. In 2016, the New Patriotic Party (NPP), then in opposition, promised in their 2016 Manifesto “to protect Ghanaians from inferior quality goods, products, and services”, adding that “we will facilitate the passage of a Consumer Protection Law.” (Page 31 of the NPP 2016 Manifesto).

With almost eight years in government, the MOTI has not taken the draft Consumer Protection Bill to Parliament. The Consumer Protection Bill did not feature in the NPP 2024 manifesto either. Is this a testament that the government has abandoned any hope of facilitating the passage of the Consumer Protection Act?

It is quite refreshing to mention, however, that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has captured the passage of the Consumer Protection Act in its 2024 manifesto. Parliament is about to consider about ten bills when it resumes and unfortunately, the Consumer Protection Bill is not on the list.

The questions that 34.5 million Ghanaians want to know are: what is preventing the MOTI from taking the draft bill to Parliament? Is the MOTI doing the bidding of some businesses by deliberately slowing the process? Is the MOTI not aware of all violations against 34.5 million Ghanaian consumers? The indisputable fact is that we are all consumers.

Appiah Kusi Adomako is the West Africa Regional Director for CUTS International Accra. CUTS is a research and public policy think tank working on consumer protection and education, competition policy and law, economic regulation, road safety and international trade.  [email protected], www.cuts-accra.org

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