Saturday, September 29, 2007 DTI starts monitoring entry of imported Christmas lights By Joy Romares-Sevilla
THE Consumer Welfare and Trade Regulation Division (CWTRD) of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in Davao Region said it will monitor entry of imported Christmas lights in the city starting in the second week of October.
Redentor Bitanga, senior trade and industry development specialist of the CWTRD, told Sun.Star Davao the division will conduct the monitoring of Christmas lights, including those being sold in big shopping malls in the Davao City, starting on October 8. This will be after the staging of the Consumers' Fair from October 4-6 at the Atrium of the Gaisano Mall of Davao.
"As of now, we are busy for the preparation of the activity, October is the consumers' month and we usually start the monitoring of Christmas lights during this month," Bitanga said in an interview.
Bitanga said DTI strictly prohibits the display of Christmas lights, construction materials, electrical products, and other imported products in stores and distributors' outlets in the city without the Import Clearance Commodity or ICC.
"If we also found products na may naka-print na na ICC sa plastic ng product from other countries, the ICC is questionable because we only give the ICC stickers after the products passed the laboratory tests," Bitanga explained.
"In some cases kasi, ang nangyayari, from the first shipment of the products, the distributor submits his products for lab tests. Pag nakapasa, saka na namin bibigyan ng stickers. After mabigyan ng ICC stickers, ang iba imu-order na naman ng products from other countries at yung number sa ICC stickers na nabigay namin, yun ang ginagamit, nakaprint na sa plastic. Bawal yun kasi hindi dumaan sa lab tests yung products from the second shipment," he added.
Bitanga claimed that last year, one of the big department stores in Davao City, which he refused to identify, was found selling illegally shipped Christmas lights.
"This means the ICC is fake," he said. He said DTI confiscated a total of 100 sets of Christmas lights from the same department store last year.
"Supposedly P25,000 ang fine, but the department store admitted guilt, so less 30 percent, P17,500 ang naging multa nila," Bitanga said.
It was learned that those who found violating the trade and industry laws, one is subjected to pay fine of P25,000 for the first offense; P50,000 for the second offense; and cancellation of business permit for the third offense.
