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The Organized Private Sector (OPS) has advised the Federal Competition and Consumers Protection Commission (FCCPC) to shelve any plan to control prices determined by market forces.
The Organized Private Sector advised the FCCPC to call on the federal government to address the economic fundamentals responsible for the high cost of goods in the country.
In an interview with Arise TV, on Sunday, members of the OPS, Nigeria Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) and the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), said any plan to regulate prices determined by market forces would be resisted.
The Director-General of NECA, Adewale Oyerinde, explained that the prices of goods increased because of high fuel costs, high energy costs and the state of the country’s foreign exchange.
Oyerinde said the one-month deadline given by FCCPC for the price of goods to come down was a wrong move aimed at controlling prices.
“Constantly fluctuating exchange rate, galloping lending rate, high energy costs, multiplicity of taxes, levies, fees and an unfriendly regulatory environment.
“The use of enforcement to moderate prices in the economy would be tantamount to enforcing price control, which might lead to hoarding of commodities and further distortion of the economy.
“Any price control measure would also contradict the market economy that the government is projecting and send wrong signals to prospective foreign and domestic investors,” he stated.
On his part, NACCIMA President, Dele Oye, said the root cause of the high cost of goods in the market is caused by government agencies’ preference for revenue to economic growth.
He added that addressing price manipulation suspected by FCCPC requires creating a business environment that would encourage competition.
“The government’s opaque and inconsistent policies, its prioritization of revenue generation over trade facilitation, and its failure to adequately address the systemic challenges impacting the ease of doing business in Nigeria are the key drivers to price fluctuations.
“The root cause of this problem is not the private sector, but rather a government that has not been faithful enough in its duty to create an enabling environment for businesses to thrive.
“The problem of exploitative pricing is not one that the private sector can solve alone; it requires a concerted effort by the government to address the systemic challenges and create an environment that fosters fair competition, innovation, and consumer protection.
“The way forward is not the pointing of fingers at each other, but rather what is needed is a comprehensive, collaborative approach that tackles the root causes and empowers businesses to thrive while safeguarding the interests of consumers,” Oye told Arise TV.
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