DTI-12 seizure of substandard consumer goods

COTABATO CITY - Agents of the Department of Trade and Industry on Tuesday destroyed more than P30,000 worth of substandard crash helmets and other merchandise seized from different stores.Mary Anne Morales, a senior staff of DTI’s Region 12 office here, said the goods were confiscated and disposed off as part of the department’s consumer welfare and protection thrusts.Morales, one of the DTI-12 employees involved in the seizure operation, said the substandard products --- crash helmets, electrical switches, receptacles, multiple male and female plugs, and circuit tapping devices --- were first used as evidence in adjudication proceedings where suppliers were proven to have violated trading laws.The seized products were destroyed in Koronadal City in the presence of representatives from the Commission on Audit.Morales said they are expecting more confiscation of substandard goods from different establishments with their continuing crackdown, which will also cover trading centers even in small towns inside Administrative Region 12.The office of DTI in Cotabato City, a component area of Region 12, confiscated from local hardware stores more than a year ago poor grade round iron support bars for building construction purposes.Morales said their regional director, Ibrahim Guimadel, supports their law enforcement activities in the region extensively.Owners of the stores from where the substandard goods destroyed on Tuesday were taken from have been warned of heavier penalties if they continue to engage in trade malpractice.