Bad Product And Human Rights Abuse
OpenLife Nigeria reports that Nigeria’s leading blogger, Chris Kehinde Nwandu, who publishes CKN News, has instructed his wife to discontinue the inclusion of Nagiko tomato mix, manufactured by Erisco Foods Limited, in the family’s menu ingredients.
This instruction arose from his disappointment over the attitude of the tomato company who arrested a social media enthusiast for making public her reservations about the excess sugar in the product.
According to the story, a woman, Chioma Okoli, said she had gone to the market on September 16, 2023 with the intention of buying Gino or Sonia brand of tomato paste but could not find them.
Chioma Okoli, who goes by the name, Chioma Egodi Jnr, on Facebook, said she later bought the Nagiko tomato mix which she had planned to use in making stew.
“When I opened it, I decided to taste it, Omo! Sugar is just too much!” she wrote on her Facebook page on September 17.
In the post, Chioma Okoli urged other Facebook users to confirm if they had used the product before, apparently to ascertain if they had similar experiences.
Miffed by such audacity to de market its product in the media space, the manufacturer of the tomato paste got Okoli arrested on Sunday by operatives of police operatives in Lagos State, South-west Nigeria. She was immediately transferred to Force Headquarters in Abuja.
Erisco Foods Limited, accused her of intentionally making the post “to mislead our esteemed customers and discredit” the company’s image. Reports have it that the Nigeria Police have released the woman .
Confirming the release, the Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), Babatunde Irukera, on Tuesday, announced that Okoli had been released on bail by the police.
Many Nigerians, including Amnesty International Nigeria, condemned the woman’s arrest by Erisco Foods Limited.
Reacting in a post on his Facebook wall titled: How To Kill A Brand, The Erisco Way, CKN gave a concise insight into the days of little beginning of the company which seems to developed a penchant for human rights abuses.
He express disappointment over the manner Erisco Foods Limited arrested the consumer for making public her observations.
He condemned the Police for engaging in inanities at a time criminal activities have dislocated the country’s economic bearings and require their intelligent attentions.
He disclosed that he has instructed a ban on the use of Erisco tomato in his home.
His post is reproduced below:
For those of us who are familiar with Erisco, it started as a one room shop along Ojota Oregun road in the 90s ( Oluyole bus stop. )
The company was selling motor batteries. I didn’t know at what point the man veered into food processing. But that’s not the topic for today.
I learnt the company petitioned the Police to arrest a lady who questioned the sugar concentration in one of its tomatoes paste. The lady posted her observation on Facebook
The Nigerian Police with all the security problems facing us decided to arrest and flew the lady to Abuja for interrogations ( can you beat that )
Well, rather than get the accolades he expected , the Chairman of Erisco and his company are now having a backlash on their actions.
Rather than make the product popular, Nigerians in their thousands are boycotting the product
I’ve asked my madam if she uses Erisco paste to cook and she said no.
Well that settles it. I’ve asked her not to use it in my home. Even if I am an advocate of made in Nigeria , this particular product will not fly with me.
You can now question the place of the Corporate Communications department of the company , the PR as well as advertising agency of this company and the quality of advice they give their management.
I learnt that my sister Sola Salako Ajulo consumer protection agency has stepped in.
No matter the outcome of their investigation, the damage is done already .
This is a very terrible way to sell a brand.
Ndonu
CKN
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