Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) said it has discovered that some cartels and groups have hijacked some formal and informal markets with a view to determine, fix and control the prices of goods and services.
Executive Vice Chairman, FCCPC, Tunji Bello, announced the decision at a stakeholder’s engagement on exploitative pricing with businesses and traders in Abuja, on Thursday.
The Commission said that the activities of the cartels and groups have heightened lately resulting in exploitative activities in the markets that have pushed the cost of basic goods and services higher than usual thereby inflicting hardship on the people.
To this end, the Commission announced a one month moratorium for the cartels and other groups operating in the markets to discontinue their activities or risk unfriendly actions from the Commission.
It said the cartels have also engaged in activities that encourage barriers to entry, exorbitant/excessive pricing, obnoxious business practices, abuse of dominant positions, unfair trade practices, restrictive agreements, market supply/allocations, among several others.
He said: “We believe that through constructive engagements, we can establish a framework for reasonable pricing that benefits all stakeholders, particularly the consumers who are the backbone of our economy. This particular approach is neither punitive nor adversarial”.
He explained that the objectives of the meeting was to provide a platform for open conversation and dialogue with the traders and other business operators to chart a path forward that balances the need for business profitability with the imperative of consumer protection.
