MANILA – In a bid to protect public consumers against fraudulent, deceptive and manipulative schemes in buying products or services in the market, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and three law enforcement agencies have closed ranks to fight such scams.
The DTI signed memoranda of agreement on August 1 with the Philippine National Police (PNP), the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA).
The signing coincided with DTI’s launching of the Project Execution Team (ET), which aims to strengthen monitoring and enforcement of Fair Trade Laws, as well as to implement DTI’s enforcement, adjudication and quick response activities and programs.
The inter-agency partnership aligns with President Rodrigo Duterte’s marching order to safeguard the security, public order and safety of Filipinos, DTI said in a press statement.
DTI said the intelligence expertise of NICA and NBI, amplified by the enforcement power of PNP, will help the trade agenct in its objective to prevent the unscrupulous trade of goods and services from the chain of suppliers, including retailers up to the selling points.
DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez called on consumers to be alert against excessive pricing, wrong labelling, incorrect weight and measure and substandard or poor quality products and services. The trade chief also urged consumers to remain vigilant and proactively report to authorities any fraud and misconduct in the market today.