Federal Government commissions SON office complex, laboratory in Ekiti

 

• Vows to punish peddlers of substandard products

The Federal Government has vowed to deal decisively with both foreign and local merchants of life threatening products in the country in order to stop their quest of making Nigeria a dumping ground for such goods.

Government also warns such fraudsters who produce and distribute substandard goods in the country to desist from their heinous acts, or face arrest and prosecution as the expanded Act of 2015 gives Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) the powers to arrest, confiscate such goods and prosecute offenders for violating the laws relating to standard of goods and services in the country.

The Minister of industry, trade and investment, Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo gave the warning while speaking at the official commissioning of SON’s office complex and laboratory in Ekiti State over the weekend, adding that  Federal Government is now more determined to fight such products and their peddlers to a standstill using modern technologies and world class infrastructures and laboratories.

Adebayo explained that before now, government was pained that hundreds of thousands of Nigerian lives have been cut short as a result of substandard and life threatening products peddled around the country.

Such products the minister listed, include poor steel and roofing sheets, adulterated lubricants, explosion from continuous usage of old and expired Lignified Petroleum Gas (LPG) cylinders, fire hazards from substandard electrical cables and retreaded vehicular tyres.

“SON has recorded significant achievements in the prosecution of offenders in the past years and more arrests and prosecution are on the way especially for foreign nationals and their Nigerian collaborators who try to turn Nigeria into a dumping ground for substandard products.

“With such situation as expressed above, the commissioning of SON building could not have come at a better time than now as this will not only expand the activities of the organization from the state capital to all Local Government Areas (LGAs), it will also reduce the cost and turnaround time for investments as against transporting product samples to SON laboratory facilities in Lagos and Enugu”, Adebayo stressed.

He further stated that the construction and the equipping of the Ekiti edifice has in fact become a priority as the nation gradually and systematically march towards independence and self reliance from oil to non-oil exports for economic growth and development, emphasizing that no serious investor will engage in manufacturing of any product without checking for regulatory compliance to standards.

The minister expressed Federal government’s appreciation to the efforts of Mallam Farouk, the Director-General/CEO of SON, whom he says has worked tirelessly to see to the timely completion of the office complex and laboratory in Ekiti State.

He also commended the organization for its initiative in signing Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with state governments on the development of and growth of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the country.

He urged SON to ensure diligent implementation of the terms of the agreement.

In his welcome address at the occasion, the Director General of SON, Mallam Farouk, stated that the commissioning of the Ekiti permanent office and lab is in line with the agency’s new found vigor in fighting fake and substandard products in the country.

Farouk expressed his delight over the official commissioning of the Office and Laboratory Complex in the state, promising that SON is now more determined than ever to fight the menace.

“In few weeks I took over the mantle of leadership at SON. I was confronted with a high level of infrastructural deficit which has limited the organisations operations. I also met ongoing office building projects around the country which had been embarked upon by the organisation to address the situation,” he said.

He stated that SON is currently on the path of closing the infrastructural gaps identified with the wholesale completion of offices and /lab projects, arguing that the commissioning of such facilities is in line with the National Quality Infrastructure (NQI) plan.

DG SON stated that he will be glad to go into partnership with Ekiti State with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the development of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME).

“This is to effectively provide tailor-made solutions through implementation of standards and codes of practices for value addition through quality assurance and good manufacturing practices,” he said.

He stressed that testing of products to relevant Nigerian Industrial Standards (NIS) and International Standards by SON laboratories means products from Ekiti State and environs can compete favourably locally and through export at the international markets, especially with the ongoing implementation of the AfCTA agreement.

He thanked Governor Kayode Fayemi for donating laboratory equipment and an additional operational vehicle to enhance SON’s reach and technical assistance to all the nooks and crannies of the State.

On his part, Ekiti State Governor Dr. Kayode Fayemi promised to reach an agreement with the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) to wage war against fake and substandard products in other to boost economic development in the state.

Fayemi explained that the full presence of the Organization would complement the Economic Plan of the state government, urging companies and business owners to establish in state as they stand to gain from favorable government policies and the SON modern facility in the state.

He stressed that the inauguration of the office and laboratory complex would boost socio-economic development and increase trade and Investment opportunity in the state.