FG Sues Coca Cola Over Alleged Substandard Product .

                                                                                      

 

Federal government has dragged Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) Limited and Coca-Cola Nigeria Limited and their chief executives before a Federal High Court in Abuja for criminal breach of the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) Act.

According to a press release made available to LEADERSHIP, the attorney general of the federation, Mr. Mohammed Adoke (SAN), in the charges filed before the court, has preferred a one-count charge against NBC and its managing director and a two-count charge against Coca-Cola Nigeria Limited and its chief executive, making them liable to jail terms ranging from three to five years, if found guilty.

 

The federal government in the charge against NBC and its managing director, Mr. Ben Langat, by the director, Public Prosecutions of the Federation on behalf of the Attorney General of the Federation, alleged that the two accused persons have committed an offence by violating the Orders of the Consumer Protection Council by “deliberately failing, refusing and/or neglecting to comply with the Council’s Orders duly made and served on you and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 21 of the Consumer Protection Council Act, Cap C. 25, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and punishable under the same section”

 

The two criminal cases have been listed before Justice Evoh Chukwu of the court.

No date has been fixed for the case.

CPC has earlier this year found NBC and Coca-Cola culpable following its findings from the administrative panel set up over a consumer complaint regarding two half-empty cans of Sprite manufactured by Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) Limited under the licence and authority of Coca Cola Nigeria Limited.

 

The Council’s Director General, Mrs. Dupe Atoki, had at a media briefing soon after the conclusion of the investigation, stated that while NBC cooperated by providing information to the administrative panel of investigation, Coca-Cola refused to attend and testify.

Mrs. Atoki disclosed that the panel, after an extensive investigation, substantiated the allegation of product defect and a violation of the Consumer Protection Council’s Act based on which several recommendations were made and Orders thereto issued to Coca-Cola and NBC.