Agencies must rid the country of fake goods

What you need to know:

  • First, the goods create economic stagnation.
  • They stifle local production, saturate the market and create an artificial boom.

Fresh reports about presence of fake goods in the market are an indictment of the authorities. This is because the problem persists but not much is being done to deal with it.

To a large extent, there is collusion between the rogue traders and officers of the agencies responsible for inspection and quality control, as well as security teams.

For there is no way those dealers, be they importers, manufacturers or sellers, could be in business without the knowledge of those agencies.

Sale of fake goods poses serious threats. First, the goods create economic stagnation. They stifle local production, saturate the market and create an artificial boom.

If they are imported, they crowd out job opportunities in the local market. Collectively, that translates to economic sabotage, which deserve stiff punishment.

Secondly, it has the impact on health. Some of the illicit goods are foodstuffs ranging from sugar to milk and rice.

They have not been examined and certified fit for human consumption. Nobody can vouch for their quality.

Ordinary buyers cannot differentiate them from genuine goods and consume them without suspicion.

What this means is that consumers are being exposed to dangerous commodities; items whose chemical composition or even expiry dates are unknown. Clearly, that is a serious health risk.

From experience, the presence of fake goods stems from lack of proper inspection and monitoring.

Either they are imported through the backdoor or manufactured under dubious conditions.

Worse, Kenya’s borders are porous and allow entry of contraband. Since the authorities hardly conduct checks to determine the quality of products on sale, anything goes.

Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) is the agency mandated in law to regulate quality of goods.

As and where necessary, it liaises with other specialised agencies to enforce standards.

At times, Kebs works with the police and other investigative agencies to rein in dealers of fake goods.

To be sure, there have been some arrests in the past of those trading in fake goods. But such actions are few and far between.

At any rate, many suspects have dodged legal penalties because they are able to manipulate the system.

An even more vexed situation is corruption. Oftentimes, the dealers of fake goods bribe their way through the system and escape sanctions.

Some have powerful connections and are untouchable. That is why we are calling for intensified and enhanced surveillance to rid the country of these bogus traders.

Kebs, the police and other investigative agencies have a duty to carry out regular and thorough checks to identify dealers in fake goods and then arrest and charge them in court.