CPC to Producers: Prioritise Consumer Satisfaction, Product Quality

Senator Iroegbu in Abuja

The Director General of the Consumer Protection Council (CPC), Babatunde Irukera has charged businesses to understand the signs of times and embrace the new order of prioritising consumer protection. This he said is the pre-eminent factor in protecting brand, businesses, managing crisis, building confidence and corporate growth, emphasising that customer satisfaction is the most vital pillar to loyalty and trust.

Irukera was quoted in a statement by the Deputy Director of Public Relations, CPC, Mr. Abiodun Obimuyiwa to have said this at a meeting with Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of food and beverage companies who are members of the Association of Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employers (AFTBE).
He noted that customer service cannot be ancillary to business, especially in the food and beverage industry rather it must be the core of business and operations.

He stressed that his invitation to a meeting of CEOs demonstrated their companies’ resolve to ensure consumer protection, admitting that producers and business owners are vital to customer satisfaction and economic growth.

According to him, “President Muhammadu’s Buhari’s administration recognises the role of business and their CEOs in economic expansion and as such is always listening to credible, transparent, genuine, fair-minded, well-meaning and societally committed businesses”.

The CPC boss argued that consumer protection was more important than Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), noting that CSR is sometimes viewed with “suspicion and characterised as self-serving in part because the companies have not truly satisfied their customers”.

Irukera maintained that “nothing repairs or maintains reputation and eliminates distrust better than fairness to customers and satisfaction in the products they purchase or consume”.

He emphasised the uniformity of CPC’s objective with companies in the association which is to please consumers and this, he said, made the case for industry and CPC collaboration, noting that, “when customer service is at its best, consumers are truly happy, spending is up, economic indicators are encouraging, my job is done, your performance is assured, and your brands endure”.

Earlier, the Group Managing Director of Flour Mills Nigeria Plc, Mr. Paul Gbededo, described AFBTE as a group of industries that have daily encounters with Nigerian consumers.

Gbededo said members of the association are eager to collaborate with the Council and happy to be regulated by the government agency, noting that “we are conscious that if consumers are not happy with us, our businesses will not go well”.