Maritime stakeholders fault SON for awarding product authentication to foreign firm

Stakeholders have faulted the plan by the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) to introduce products authentication scheme in Nigeria saying that engaging a foreign company to carry out such sensitive contract will not only be counter-productive, but a threat to national security.

Reacting to the development, Chief Mike Agboloma, the Managing Director of Maritime Expert Services Limited, while lauding SON for conceiving such project, faulted the engagement of a foreign company to carry out what he described as very sensitive project.

“The products authentication scheme is a good initiative as there are many fake and substandard products in the market. Nigerians are loosing their hard earned money buying these products; some of the products have even led to loss of lives and properties.

“But my worry is engaging a foreign company to carry out the scheme. Bulk of the fake products flowing into the country are from Asia, including the country of origin of the contractor. My fear is that they might collude with their people to sustain the illicit trades instead of curbing it,” he said.

Also speaking on the issue, an importer and Chief Executive Officer of Global Trading Concept Limited, Sir Anthony Okeke faulted the product authentication initiative, stating that outsourcing the contract to a foreign company constituted a big threat to national security. He said that Nigeria’s young graduates were roaming the streets without jobs which had contributed to high level of crime.

It will be recalled that SON recently announced that it has engaged the services of MSP Secure Technologies Nigeria Ltd, the Nigerian affiliate of an international security printing outfit, Mandras Security Printing Private Limited of India, to introduce a product authentication scheme in Nigeria.

in form of militancy, kidnapping, oil pipeline vandalism, armed robbery, fraud, sectionalism, violent agitation for dismemberment of the country and so on. He said that the crimes were threatening the corporate existence and security of the country.

Okeke said that instead of SON to seize the opportunity of the scheme to create jobs and pull some of the youths off the streets, they chose to engage a foreign company.

“This initiative would have created jobs and pull some of the young graduates off the streets. This would have lessened some of the crimes threatening national security “ he said.

The scheme it claimed is aimed at assisting consumers to determine the genuineness of products before purchase.