The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has announced the reopening of Sahad Stores, a supermarket situated in the Garki region of Abuja, barely 24 hours after sealing the store for misleading pricing.
The supermarket was sealed on Friday by an enforcement team for its practices of “misleading pricing and lack of transparency in pricing.”
The FCCPC’s investigations uncovered that Sahad Stores showcased lower prices on shelves but applied higher prices during checkout.
The commission stated that the investigation covered all Sahad Stores branches in Abuja, aiming to gain a thorough understanding of the issues and enforce corrective measures throughout the entire chain.
What FCCPC is Saying
In a statement, Adamu Ahmed Abdullahi, the acting executive vice chairman of the FCCPC, announced that Sahad Stores had committed to implementing transparent pricing practices, following a mutual understanding and commitment.
- “On February 16, 2024, FCCPC operatives visited Sahad Stores and confirmed through random checks that the deceptive practice did not only continue, but cashiers also charged prices at their discretion, leaving unsuspecting customers vulnerable to unfair pricing.
- “Exercising its authority under Section 18(f), the Commission temporarily sealed the premises.
- “However, following a mutual understanding and commitment from Sahad Stores to implement transparent pricing practices, the FCCPC reopened the store on February 16, 2024, at about 7 p.m.
- “Businesses are expected to display transparent pricing information to empower consumers to make informed purchasing decisions, especially during challenging economic times,” the statement reads in part.
Backstory
Earlier on Friday, February 16, Nairametrics reported that the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), sealed off the head office of a popular supermarket in the Garki area of Abuja, Sahad supermarket/stores, over customers extortion and lack of transparency in prices.
According to the report, the acting Executive Vice Chairman of FCCPC, Dr Adamu Abdullahi, who led the enforcement team to seal off the premises in Abuja on Friday, February 16, 2024, said the act was an obnoxious practice which amounted to a violation of rights under the FCCP Act.
He said,
“What we have found out that they are doing is misleading pricing and lack of transparency in their pricing which is against section 155 (3) of the FCCPAct.
- “It is an obnoxious practice and amounts to a violation of rights under the FCCPA.
- “Section 155 of FCCPA states that any corporate person that contravenes this law is liable to a fine of N100 million or even more.
- “We found out that they are contravening this law and made sure that we came to tell them that our mandate is very clear. What we have come here today to do is to make sure that they comply with the law.
- “We called them to defend themselves, but they failed to show up and in the long run, they sent a lawyer and the lawyer is not familiar with the case, but we requested for names of people that we wanted to come and defend them.”
