Substandard digital gadgets flood market, says CFTC
The Competition and Fair Trading Commission (CFTC) has said some unscrupulous traders are taking advantage of the rapid growth in uptake of digital products to bring sub-standard gadgets on the market.
In an interview last week in Lilongwe, CFTC executive director Charlotte Wezi Malonda said many people are buying counterfeit gadgets.
“Sometimes you go into a shop [and] you buy a Samsung phone, but when you open it you find the battery is that of a Blackberry. This is not on. Consumers are being offered substandard digital gadgets,” she said.
Malonda said CFTC has received numerous complaints emanating from the increase in the uptake of digital products in telecommunications, electronics, online marketing, media and communication, banking and credit purchasing.
Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism Principal Secretary Cliff Chiunda said although there is high demand for digital products, the rapid growth in digital technology has come with challenges.
He said some of the challenges include offering substandard digital gadgets and services to consumers, offering defective digital products and services, offering defective digital products without warranty and excluding liability for the same.
“If you offer substandard products, it will not only negate consumer welfare and perpetuate poverty, but also wash down the trust of our local and international business partners and clientele on us.
