SON Seizes N200m Fake Cellphones

Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has seized substandard telephone handsets worth over N200 million in a raid at the Lagos computer village at Ikeja .

Engr Bede Obayi, head of intelligence and compliance directorate of SON, said that  “the exercise was diligently carried as a result of its surveillance team reports which monitors products displayed for sale in all the markets across the country.”

He pointed out that a handset dealer, Trinity Technologies and Communication Ltd came to SON and registered one H-Mobile phone in his name only for SON to discover thereafter that the company had embarked on the importation of different brands of telephone handset other than the H-Mobile originally registered with SON.

Besides that, Obayi said the company also imported large quantity of unbranded handsets into the country and labelled them with popular brands in the market thereby deceiving unsuspecting buyers.

Obayi noted that the GSM importers in Ikeja computer village had being given five months grace for them to register their products with the SON. Those who have refused to take advantage of this grace period must be ready to face full weight of the law.

“SON does not derive pleasure in seizing and destroying goods but rather to protect and guide innocent consumers not to fall prey to the antics of unscrupulous business men whose stock in trade were to reap their buyers off,” he said.

He advised Nigerians to go to any SON offices across the country for complaints as SON has a Consumer Complaint Desk which handles complaints from consumers who are short changed through purchase of products which did not give them value for their money.