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Pride Mahlangu, Business Reporter

THE Consumer Rights Association (CRA) has called on relevant regulatory authorities to investigate and deal with dealers of counterfeit products that have flooded the market and shortchanging consumers of fair deals.

Counterfeit products are goods, often of inferior quality, made and sold under another’s brand name without the brand owner’s authorisation.

The selling of counterfeit products has in recent months spread across the country’s informal sector with Bulawayo not being an exception with the prices of goods highly pegged.

Such counterfeits range from basic commodities, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.

CRA spokesperson Mr Effie Ncube said the selling of counterfeit products has spread countrywide and his association has reported the matter to law enforcement agents as well as other authorities. 

“For instance, there are some uncouth business practices where we have noted that some elements are pouring a detergent like sta-soft in a roll-on container selling it as perfume to unsuspecting consumers,” he said.

Mr Ncube said the authorities have promised that they are going to conduct thorough investigations to establish the source of the counterfeit products.

He said there were also other players in the formal sector like the milling industry who inflate weights of their mealie meal.

“There is also the issue of counterfeit drugs that are still flooding the market. We are calling upon the authorities to take this matter seriously. There is a need for serious awareness campaign because lots of people are buying those counterfeit products that have the potential of posing a health hazard or causing deaths that could have been easily avoided,” said Mr Ncube.

Bulawayo police spokesperson Chief Inspector Precious Simango confirmed receiving reports of counterfeit products mainly of alcohol in the market.

“Last week we received reports of people selling fake alcohol products and we raided the street dealers of these products, in a campaign to stop such illegal acts,” she said. 

Chief Insp Simango said they were also aware of fake cough syrups that were being sold in Harare and Chivi, adding that they were yet to receive reports of counterfeit medicines in Bulawayo. 

She urged the public to buy goods in registered outlets to mitigate the risks of buying fake products.

Counterfeit products have a lot of negative repercussions to consumers as they also result in the public having less diversity in product choice as well as decreasing incentives for industry innovation. 

Product counterfeiting also harms industry by substituting the original goods for fake, cheap ones, thus revenue is lost. — @pridesinstinctz.