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Vietnamese consumers told to get angry
Why are low-quality and toxic products still selling everywhere in the market? HCM City economic experts say it is because government management agencies are not strict enough while consumers are too resigned.
Local newspapers have recently reported a lot of information about low-quality and toxic Chinese products, including melamine-contaminated milk and toxic toys and clothes for children. Most recently, China’s Guang Dong authorities released a report that says 50 percent of bottled drinks and other products of 72 companies in the province do not meet requirements on food safety.
Local newspaper VnExpres reporters made a quick survey at An Dong and Binh Tay markets in HCM City and found out that toys and clothes sourced from China are still selling everywhere, from big markets to pavement shops.
Consumers, ignoring the information about toxic products, have resumed purchasing China-made products, while government agencies are indifferent to the problem or have been late in reacting.
At An Dong Market, Thanh Huong, a customer, said: “I heard that China-made dairy products contained melamine and could cause cancer and that China-made clothes contained formaldehyde. The information once frightened me. However, I have not heard any recommendations from government agencies about that and I think that the products are not too dangerous.”
The owner of a grocery at Binh Tay market said that customers seem to be more hesitant with China-sourced clothes. However, many customers still purchase the clothes for their children.
Meanwhile, representative from the HCM City Healthcare Department said that the department has not received any dispatch from a higher level on how to deal with China-made goods.
Prior to that, the General Department of Measure, Standard and Quality announced that it found formaldehyde in China-made clothes available in Hanoi. However, the department said that it couldn’t conclude if a 2 percent content of formaldehyde is harmful to human health since Vietnam did not have regulations on the contents of toxic substances in goods.
Dang Van Khoa, Deputy of the HCM City People’s Council, said that since Vietnamese consumers do not know what products are safe, they need to be protected by government agencies amid the onrush of low-quality imports.
Khoa stressed that government agencies ought not to cite reasons to explain away their lax management. “They simply are not fulfilling their duties as management agencies,” Khoa said.
Khoa has called on government agencies to take prompt action to deal with China-made low-quality products. In order to do that, Khoa said, border gate agencies need to tighten inspections to prevent illegal goods from getting into the country.
“Government agencies need to strengthen inspections and supervision over products available on the market. Not only China-made products, but domestically-made products also need strict control,” Khoa said.
“Besides, consumers also need to have strong reactions to low-quality products. They need to learn to grow angry with toxic products, so that producers will learn lessons about their disregard for customers,” he added.
Dinh Son Hung, Deputy Head of the HCM City Institute for Development Studies, also said that consumers have the right to be informed by government agencies about the quality of goods.
Hung said that government agencies need to apply strict measures to punish enterprises which, running after profit, deliberately import and distribute low-quality products.
“We need to take action, we don’t need idle talk,” Hung said.
VietNamNet, VNE
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