APPLICATION OF CRIMINAL SANCTIONS IN THE CONSUMER PROTECTION REGIME IN NIGERIA: AN APPRAISAL

Abstract

The limitation of consumer rights protection by civil law principles is best captured by the statement; nobody is going to jail. Although human nature suggests that the use of criminal sanctions may be likelier to get the attention of offenders, especially when punishment for conviction is hinged on a loss of personal liberty for natural persons involved. This article proposes to discuss consumer rights in Nigeria, its protection by civil law principles, the limitation of this approach as well as the necessity for a further deepening of criminal sanctions to better protect consumer rights in Nigeria. Several laws have been enacted over the years that, criminalise actions of persons who breach consumer rights. From the Consumer Protection Council Act of 1992 (CPCA), Cap. C25, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 to the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, 2018 (FCCPA 2018), several agencies have also been set up to receive complaints from consumers, investigate, and prosecute the offenders. These are all geared towards protecting the interest of consumers and providing succor to aggrieved consumers. This article examines the concept of protection of the rights of consumers from harmful and sharp practices of suppliers of goods and services by a regime of criminal punishment for consumer rights violators. It finds that the application of criminal sanctions to the protection of consumer rights has no doubt proven to be a veritable tool, especially considering the limitations faced by individual consumers in ventilating their grievances in the civil law courts.The research methodology comprised a consultation of the relevant Nigerian statutory and judicial sources of consumer protection laws, as well as reports, articles, and other literature as deemed necessary. The paper makes recommendations and conclude that criminal sanctions ensure that suppliers of goods and services are constantly deterred from breaching the rights of consumers