YES, if you have ever purchased something and needed to return it, you have exercised your consumer’s rights.
October is Consumer Welfare Month. We are all consumers, and we have rights to be protected. We have eight basic rights. These, as articulated by global consumer movement, include the right to the satisfaction of basic needs, the right to safety, the right to be informed, the right to choose, the right to be heard, the right to consumer education, the right to a healthy environment, and the right to redress.
These rights have not always been something easily defined or enforced. The annual Consumer Welfare Month observance could help bring awareness to these rights.
Allow us to zero in on the right to a healthy environment. We as consumers have the right to clean air, safe water, renewable energy sources, and waste-free, toxic-free ecosystems. We hope that our legislators will strengthen the Consumer Act of the Philippines, as well as localize the United Nations Guidelines for Consumer Protection (UNGCP).
In December 2015, the UN General Assembly adopted the revised UNGCP which, among other things, acknowledged “access to essential goods and services, and the protection of vulnerable and disadvantaged consumers as new consumer legitimate needs.”
According to Consumers International, “adequate consumer protection can directly support the achievement of UN Sustainable Development Goals relating to ending hunger and improving nutrition by supporting access to safe, affordable and healthy diets; to health and well-being by protecting consumers from unsafe products that cause illness or injury, and expanding access to effective pharmaceuticals.”
Yes, our voices as consumers must never be silenced. Let us raise ours voices and let these be heard. Stronger consumer protection laws will prevent market abuse, ensure fair play and justice, and safeguard public health and the environment.
