NEWS

By Hilda Austria

Seven establishments in Pangasinan have been penalized for violating the Philippine product standards laws, rules and regulations based on the monitoring of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Pangasinan provincial office in 2020.

In an interview on Monday, DTI-Pangasinan provincial director Natalia Dalaten said they collected PHP292,500 in fines from these firms which were deposited in the national treasury.

“Most of the violations of the standard are in electrical appliances and construction materials. For instance, the appliances that do not have import commodity clearance and construction materials that are substandard,” she said.

Dalaten said they were recognized as a top agency in monitoring and enforcement of standards amid the pandemic that started last year.

“We are for a development approach but we do not tolerate violations,” she said.

Meanwhile, Dalaten also reminded consumers to know their rights as provided in the Consumer Act of the Philippines.

“There is a need to assert one’s consumer rights nowadays especially that consumers are bombarded with lots of choices and (a) wide array of products and services,” she said.

She added consumers have the right to basic needs, safety, information, choice, representation, redress, consumer education, and healthy environment, as well as consumer responsibilities as provided in the Consumer Act of the Philippines.

Source: Philippine News Agency