16 traders in the central and western divisions have been issued with notices with regards to the Homes‑Care initiative while 12 businesses involved in the Farms‑Care initiative have been issued with similar notices so far by the Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission.
The Commission is now investigating issues pertaining to the government’s CARE programmes which have been initiated for post cyclone relief assistance.
The Commission and the Consumer Council of Fiji have already visited numerous traders and businesses who are engaged under the Homes‑Care and Farms‑Care initiative and issued them with notices to furnish information to the taskforce which will enable the team to ascertain whether the issues being raised are correct.
Those who will be found to be in breach of the Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission Act 2010 will be taken to task.
Those who are found to be misusing the Homes‑Care initiative and/or providing false and misleading information may be liable for a fine of up to $20,000 or an imprisonment term of up to ten years.
A taskforce comprising of staff members from the Commission and the Consumer Council of Fiji have begun investigating the concerns regarding the manner in which some businesses have responded to the government initiative.
The main objective of the taskforce which is headed by Commission CEO, Joel Abraham and Council CEO, Premila Kumar is to ensure that the assistance which is targeted towards the vulnerable victims of natural disasters are not taken advantage of by some unscrupulous traders and businesses.
It has come to light that some traders are taking advantage of the initiatives by hiking prices of items to be sold under the initiative. Some traders are also accepting payments and asking for the items to be delivered at a later date.
All these claims are now being actively investigated.
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